Social scientists on future of food, land and people

Crickets, worms, hooves and calf brains don’t sound like typical Kiwi fare. But developing a taste for these and other types of animal protein could be a part of the solution to future food security and sustainability, according to Massey University sociologist Dr Corrina Tucker.

Dr Tucker is co-organiser of an agri-food conference for international social scientists at Massey University’s Manawatū campus this week, and is presenting the latest findings from her research, titled Meat?

She surveyed people about a range of topics on farming, food and the environment, including their views on eating "nose-to-tail".

Dr Tucker, from the School of People, Environment and Planning, is among a growing global movement in social sciences focused on researching critical, pressing issues such as how to feed the world’s growing population and produce in an environmentally sustainable way.

Food security, organics, tourism, sustainable agriculture, trends affecting family farms and lifestyle blocks are among the topics geologists, sociologists, anthropologists and political scientists will explore at the Agrifood: Histories/Futures conference from December 10-13. It is the 19th conference of the Australian and New Zealand Agri-food Research Network, with 80 researchers from the United States, Britain, Australia, Germany and New Zealand attending.

Co-organiser and anthropologist Dr Carolyn Morris says social scientists are increasingly concerned about issues to do with the production, distribution and consumption of food in a global context.

“Things are changing so fast. We need to understand the drivers and dynamics of food production in an era of globalisation,” she says. “Why do people eat the food they do? What makes food accessible and affordable? What do we mean by ‘healthy’ food? Why do we continue to produce and export foods that wealthy countries can afford while many have no food and go hungry? These are complicated issues."

She says the notion of new “food futures” is a hot topic among social scientists.“Business as usual in the agri-food sector is increasingly understood to be economically, environmentally, socio-culturally and intellectually unsustainable,” she says. “As academics, we seek to understand how the histories of various agri-food systems operate and how they shape the future, and then to ask what the alternatives might be.”

Keynote speakers are Professor Terry Marsden from Cardiff University, Professor Eric Pawson from Canterbury University and Dr Tanira Kingi, from Massey.

Professor Marsden is speaking on the concept of a “bio-economy” – an integrated model for science-based sustainability, health and food security. Dr Kingi, a scientist specialising in Mäori development, and indigenous land and resource development, will discuss land use and agri-food initiatives among a range of Mäori entities.

For more information go to:
http://www.massey.ac.nz/massey/learning/departments/school-people-environment-planning/conferences-and-events/agri-food-xix/about-agri-food/about-agri-food_home.cfm