STARKVILLE — Experts in global food safety and security from around the world have descended on Mississippi State University today for a day-long conference discussing the university and state’s role in combating the agricultural side of world hunger.
The conference, “Technology Implementation at the Local Level: Food Security for the Future,” was organized by MSU’s International Institute and is free to the public.
Raj Shah, administrator of the United States Agency for International Development, will speak on the role universities play in addressing the broad issue that is world hunger.
Since joining the Obama administration, Shah and his agency have set a goal to move 18 million people out of hunger internationally and to move more than seven million children out of chronic malnutrition.
He said MSU’s studies on aflatoxins, a fungal disease that can devastate crop yields, play a huge role in producing more resilient plants, in particular corn, one of the main food sources for hundreds of millions of people around the world.
A study by North Caroline A&T State University, in conjunction with Faroogh Life Sciences Research Laboratory, estimates more than a quarter of the plant’s food crop is affected by aflatoxins, and exposure through ingestion can increase cancer incidents and other health problems.
“It is clear that the scientists and researchers at MSU have a unique commitment to tackling some of the technical challenges that are most significant in other parts of the world,” Shah said.
He credits U.S. Sen. Thad Cochran and MSU President Mark Keenum and leaders like them for making food safety and security a priority issue, saying the university has begun to lead a large American effort to bring university expertise to the task.
“It also turns out there are hundreds of students on campus there, maybe thousands, that are deeply, deeply committed to these types of issues,” Shah said. “I suspect many other universities will follow their lead over time, but (MSU) is on the cutting edge and we want to partner with them.”
There is a common misconception, Shah said, that the federal government spends a lot of money on food security and safety efforts. According to Shah, less than one percent of the federal budget is actually allocated to these kinds of result-oriented programs.
“So the biggest and easiest thing anyone can really do is just be aware of the challenge,” he said. “Just support that effort.”
Shah is one of several national and international leaders that will be speaking, including Daniel Gustafson, the director of the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization’s North American office, who will participate in a panel discussion of how to best monitor and evaluate the success of research and implementation efforts.
A live stream of the conference is available on the conference website, research.msstate.edu/foodsecurity.
For more information, contact Benjy Mikel at 662-325-5508.
The Dispatch Editorial Board is made up of publisher Peter Imes, columnist Slim Smith, managing editor Zack Plair and senior newsroom staff.
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