STORY AND PHOTO BY KAREN BOSSICK
The Future of Food will be the subject of a free Policy Pub from 5 to 6 p.m. Thursday, April 11, at the Sawtooth Brewery Public House, 631 Warm Springs Road in Ketchum.
The Policy Pub will showcase perspectives on food and agriculture in the Wood River Valley.
Idaho’s agricultural production is a major contributor to Idaho’s economy, accounting for 20 percent of its total economic output and 16 percent of its GDP. The Gem State boasts more than 25,000 farms and ranches producing more than 185 crops, including lentils and mint.
But industrial agricultural has taken its toll via drinking water contamination, air pollution and desertification.
This pub will explore what can be done to shepherd a transformation from a degenerative industrial system to a regenerative, resilient one without these downsides.
Speakers will include Fred Brossy, farmer and owner of Ernie’s Organics; Mark Davidson, director of conservation initiatives for The Nature Conservancy; Lauren Golden, associate professor at the University of Idaho Extension, and Amy Mattias, co-director of the Local Food Alliance for the Sun Valley Institute.
The discussion will be moderated by University of Idaho’s James A. and Louise McClure’s Center for Public Policy Research Director Katherine Himes.
This is the first of a series of Pop-up Policy Pub sessions being organized by the McClure Center across Idaho. This one is co-hosted by the Sun Valley Institute, which was organized to be a catalyst promoting quality of place and economic, ecological and social resilience.
Admission is free. But those who wish to attend are asked to RSVP at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/policy-pub-the-future-of-food-tickets-58591709380