Global Neighborhood dinner fosters discussion of GMOs, food industry

Discussion buzzed in Lakeside following a presentation the evening of Nov. 3. “Seeds of an Idea: Public Policy to Preserve and Protect our Food Chain” explored the origins of our food and the system within the industry. Betty Morgan, associate professor of political science and chair of the Department of Political Science and Policy Studies at Elon University, served as the faculty speaker.

Olivia Choplin, Interim Faculty Director of the Global Neighborhood and associate professor of French in the Department of World Languages and Cultures, hosted the event. According to Choplin, food is an important topic within all communities, but not one often intellectually discussed. Global Neighborhood’s theme this year — "Food: The Culture, Ethics and Politics of Eating" — attempts to kick-start a dialogue about what we are consuming.

“This year’s Global Neighborhood theme allows us to examine a subject that is of prime importance to everyone on the planet from a variety of disciplinary perspectives,” Choplin said in an email. “Food relates to so many things — culture, politics, economics, ethics, science — so it made for a great topic to engage with many departments across campus.”

For most of her presentation, Morgan discussed the effects of genetically-modified organisms (GMOs) on the health of the U.S. public since their introduction to the food industry in the mid-1990s. She challenged the audience to be more aware of what is in the food they eat.

“There are obvious changes that have happened in American health and diet since 1996,” Morgan said. “Now, we all know correlation is not causation — correlation is just a lot of stuff moving around. But when you get that much stuff moving around starting in 1996 and we don’t have good research to tell us why, it’s time to ask some better questions.”

Choplin hosted three farmers as well as Morgan to contribute their perspectives: Liz Clore of Bushy Tail Farm in Saxapahaw, North Carolina, Faylene Whitaker of Whitaker Farms in Liberty, North Carolina, and Michael McPherson of McPherson Farms in nearby Alamance. Richard Campbell, chief communications officer of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at North Carolina State University, was also invited to attend.

Choplin said the farmers who attended had been at Elon for a screening of the film "Farmland" and the subsequent Farmer Panel earlier in the day Tuesday. They were invited by Professor of Environmental Studies and Biology Janet MacFall, who participated in the Farmer Panel, sponsored by the Elon University Center for Environmental Studies, the Office of Sustainability and the Farm Bureau.

McPherson, who uses GMOs in his farming, is the vice president of Alamance County Farm Bureau, an “advocacy group for farmers in rural areas of the whole United States.” According to McPherson, there is a lot of misinformation out there, but there are two sides to the debate about the use of GMOs.

“I think [GMOs are] proven to be safe — find me one person who’s sick from it,” he said.

According to Choplin, the presentation and discussion topic is chosen at the discretion of the faculty presenter, and is supposed to relate to the neighborhood theme for the year. Morgan, who teaches a food policy course at Elon, “chose to talk about the subject of seed saving as it relates to the market for GMOs,” Choplin explained.

After Morgan’s presentation, Choplin encouraged each table to break out into small group discussions between students and faculty over their reactions to the presentation and thoughts on the topic. The room reconvened to share what they had discussed, much of which revolved around the challenges that accompany eating organic.

According to one audience member, “Even though we like to go organic, it’s not the most economical thing to do … We want to, but it’s tough.”

McPherson’s response to concerns over the use of GMOs in food production touched on the issue of the amount of food farmers are able to produce organically.

“Simply put, we’re not going to feed the world with organics,” he said.

He encouraged the audience to “do [their] research, ask the right questions,” in order to be better educated and able to make their own decisions.

Choplin praised the night’s discussion as an example of a “tense but polite debate” over a controversial topic.

“Obviously, not everyone in the room had the same opinion of genetically-modified seeds, but the disagreements were voiced in respectful ways, and students were encouraged to do more research in order to be informed consumers,” Choplin said. “I think it also showed students that these issues are complex and nuanced, and that there are not always simple answers to the questions we raise in our classrooms.”

According to McPherson, farming is something “you’ve got to love to do.”

“There’s not a lot of profit in it, so you’ve got to love it,” he said. “GMOs enable us to be better producers and to produce the food and fuel and fiber that this world needs.”