The Dish II: GMOs & You

<< Check out our next Dish discussion

City Market and the Intervale Center have teamed up to create a new exploratory series called The Dish. With support from ArtsRiot, we’ll host quarterly panel discussions to dive into hot food issues with the help of local experts.

Meet the Panel

GMO Basics

How does genetic engineering technology compare with other plant breeding techniques?

What are the documented impacts, positive or negative, of the various applications of GE technology in agriculture?

What would you suggest a consumer thinks about when making a purchasing decision?

What brought you here tonight?

How do we know whether GMO foods might be causing allergies?

Is there data showing yield increases or reduced chemical use on GMO crops?

Will the 'noise' around the GMO labeling debate impact research funding?

Closing remarks - What one thing should you walk away with?

Resources

• “Panic Free GMOs” (26 part series)
  Grist
  by Nathanael Johnson
  http://grist.org/series/panic-free-gmos/
• “A Green-Movement Website Shakes Up The Debate Over GMOs” (a primer to the Grist series)
  NPR The Salt
  By Dan Charles
  http://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/2014/01/09/261076195/a-green-movement-website-shakes-up-the-debate-over-gmos
• “What is Food?”
  GMO Labeling Remarks from Will Stevens
  http://nofavt.wordpress.com/2013/05/28/what-is-food-gmo-labeling-remarks-from-will-stevens/
• “Leave ‘Organic’ Out of It"
  New York Times Op-ed
  By Mark Bittman
  http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/07/opinion/bittman-leave-organic-out-of-it.html
• A Lonely Quest for Facts on Genetically Modified Crops
  New York Times
  By Amy Harmon
  http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/05/us/on-hawaii-a-lonely-quest-for-facts-about-gmos.html
• Should People Fear or Embrace GMOs?
  Stone Barns Center for Food & Agriculture
  By Jane Black
  http://www.stonebarnscenter.org/learn/jane-black-on-food-ag/fear-or-embrace-gmos.html

The Dish II: GMOs and You

Wednesday, May 21, 2014
5:30pm – 7:00pm
ArtsRiot, 400 Pine St

Doors open at 5:00pm.
Cash bar. Snacks by City Market and FREE ice cream from Ben & Jerry’s!

Our exploratory series continues with an evening focused on genetically modified organisms. What is the role of genetic engineering in farming and the foods that end up on our shelves? What does the science tell us? How does corporate interest play a role? How should this technology be monitored and regulated? We'll unpack the issues surrounding the GMO debate and get clarity on what the everyday consumer should know. Now with an even longer Q&A session – come prepared with a question or two!

Sponsored by ArtsRiot

FREE! $5 suggested donation to benefit the Intervale Center accepted online or at the door. RSVP on Facebook or by emailing ttaylor@citymarket.coop.

RSVP  Donate to Intervale Center

Meet the Panel

• Dave Rogers - Policy Advisor at NOFA-VT
• Heather Darby - Darby Farm and Associate Prof. of Agronomy at UVM Extension
• Tom Vogelmann - Dean of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at UVM

Moderated by Alison Nihart, UVM Food Systems Initiative

Thanks to Ben & Jerry's for donating ice cream for this event. Did you know that they are going entirely GMO-free later this year?

Meet Our Moderator

Alison Nihart is the Assistant for the Food Systems Initiative – UVM’s university-wide transdisciplinary initiative to promote food systems research, education, and outreach. Alison graduated from UVM in 2012 with a master’s in Natural Resources. Her thesis research project looked at urban agriculture policy in Burlington, VT.

In her free time, she serves as Facilitator for the Burlington Food Council and can be found wandering around local farmers' markets.

Check out some of Alison's work on the UVM Food Feed Blog.