Most Americans take food and agriculture for granted, including food scientists
that are working hard to develop better ways to feed the world, according to the
U.S. National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) Director Sonny Ramaswamy.
In office since May 7, his mission is to raise the profile of farming and
nutrition science.
When asked if agricultural science has an image problem in the United States, he said the public perception is of small-town universities just doing meat-and-potatoes production agriculture. But the reality is the United States is home to some of the top agricultural-science universities in the world that are developing tools related to robotics, informatics, nanotechnology, biotechnology and food safety, in addition to developing better ways to feed the world.
He also pointed out that Americans take food and agriculture for granted. In fact, the average American spends 9 cents per dollar on food compared to people in India and China who spend about one-third of their income on food.
Ramaswamy is very concerned with the immensity of the challenge of feeding a global population that is projected to reach 9 billion by 2050, with diminishing water and land resources, and climate change. He noted those are big research issues the NIFA has to tackle.
When asked about 2012 Farm Bill he said he hopes its enables NIFA to invest commensurate resources to facilitate the best science to address the societal challenges of agricultural production and food security, adapting to climate change, energy, water, nutrition and food safety.
In a candid interview with the journal Nature, Ramaswamy discussed NIFA research, working with a
tight budget, how agricultural science needs a makeover, and the 2012 Farm
Bill.
When asked if agricultural science has an image problem in the United States, he said the public perception is of small-town universities just doing meat-and-potatoes production agriculture. But the reality is the United States is home to some of the top agricultural-science universities in the world that are developing tools related to robotics, informatics, nanotechnology, biotechnology and food safety, in addition to developing better ways to feed the world.
He also pointed out that Americans take food and agriculture for granted. In fact, the average American spends 9 cents per dollar on food compared to people in India and China who spend about one-third of their income on food.
Ramaswamy is very concerned with the immensity of the challenge of feeding a global population that is projected to reach 9 billion by 2050, with diminishing water and land resources, and climate change. He noted those are big research issues the NIFA has to tackle.
When asked about 2012 Farm Bill he said he hopes its enables NIFA to invest commensurate resources to facilitate the best science to address the societal challenges of agricultural production and food security, adapting to climate change, energy, water, nutrition and food safety.
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