Today has been “Blog Action Day” and the theme this year is poverty. Coincidentally, that is the basic theme here in Des Moines at the World Food Prize Norman Borlaug Symposium – since the key focus is on feeding the hungry. So, I actually decided to participate in the event this year – both on AgWired and Domestic Fuel, since I am covering this event.
This year’s winners are former U.S. Senators George McGovern and Bob Dole, who are responsible for legislation creating an international school-feeding program which has provided meals to feed more than 22 million children in 41 countries. They are pictured here during a dialogue held at the event with 2003 World Food Prize winner Catherine Bertini, former executive director of the World Food Program.
Tonight’s conversation included lots of good-natured joking between the two former senators who sat on opposite sides of the aisle while in office but had a common goal of getting children in this nation and other countries as well at least one good solid meal a day – not just for their physical well-being but also because it helps them learn better in school. And nothing beats a good education when it comes to helping alleviate poverty.
The biggest focus at this symposium is on increasing agricultural productivity, especially in countries such as Africa where poverty and hunger are more common than just about any other continent. The need there is for increased agricultural research and development, better irrigation techniques, improved seed varieties with resistance to drought and insect pressure, better market development, etc.
See photos of the World Food Prize event here.
Meet John Davis in case you haven’t. I meant to let you know earlier that he’s covering the Farm Foundation’s Transition to a Bio Economy: Environmental and Rural Impacts Conference in St. Louis this week while Cindy is in Des Moines at the World Food Prize Symposium and I’m at Sunbelt Ag Expo.
I got an overview of Sunbelt Ag Expo today. By overview I mean from the control tower for this airport which was formerly a military airfield. I climbed up and took a few photos early today.
Even though the word “crisis” is being used liberally here at the 
Conway stressed the need to address why we want to produce biofuels and the urgency to move quickly into second and even third generation biofuels – such as cellulosic ethanol from switchgrass and biodiesel from algae. “Maybe we should have a new World Food Prize on this,” Conway said. “In which we transform the world from one dependent on fossil fuels for energy and production of chemicals, into one that depends on plants as a basic source of our economy.”
One of the key speakers during this session was USDA’s Under Secretary for Rural Development Thomas Dorr, who talked about how we need to move forward and be aggressive… even in light of the recent stock market turbulence.
When it comes to farm show food booths, one that’s getting a lot of business at Sunbelt Ag Expo is Roasted Corn.
This is Justin Cremer, director of communications for the World Food Prize, at the door of the press room. Not too many media types here yet – more will be on hand for the bigger events, like the Laureate’s Forum tonight and the actual presentation of the World Food Prize on Thursday. 
One person who is here is Susan Carter – the newest member of USDA’s broadcast team. She took over the spot vacated by the legendary Brenda Curtis when she retired early this year. Susan has been on the job since May and while she is smiling in this photo, she has been experiencing some of the usual on the road headaches – flight delays and cancellations, internet problems and computer issues. Bless her heart – and she is still smiling.
The World Food Prize Norman E. Borlaug International Symposium is getting underway here in Des Moines with a couple of side seminars early this morning. The opening ceremony takes place at 1 pm central time. 
One of this morning’s seminars was hosted by USDA’s Foreign Agriculture Service, and since we didn’t have a speaker program for that event, I was surprised to walk in the room and see one of this year’s laureates, Hon. George McGovern at the podium. Wish I had known, I would have gotten a recorder on the podium because he had some very interesting remarks about the history of USDA and his role with Bob Dole in expanding and strengthening the school feeding program on a global basis. One of his comments was that he sees the role of USDA growing in the future to help feed a growing population. McGovern will be speaking at a forum this evening with Sen. Dole.
The latest in a series of Farm Foundation-sponsored meetings on how to transition the country to a bioeconomy is about to get underway this morning in St. Louis, Mo.