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10-13-2004 |
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Governor Bob Wise and Commissioner of Agriculture Gus R. Douglass remind everyone that Saturday, October 16, 2004, marks World Food Day, an ongoing effort to increase food security around the globe. Governor Wise has signed a proclamation encouraging all West Virginia citizens to become better informed about issues related to the global food supply. Friday, October 15, 2004, from 12 p.m.-3 p.m., West Virginia University Institute of Technology in Montgomery will host a World Food Day satellite feed entitled "Biodiversity for Food Security" in the COBE Building, Room 212. The first hour will be devoted to "The Politics of Hunger," and will feature United Nations food expert Dr. Werner Kiene and Nobel Prize winner Norman Borlaugh. The second hour will feature a presentation by local writer Rick Wilson. The third hour will go back to the satellite feed for a question and answer session. The feed will also be available as a webcast. Visit www.worldfooddayusa.org to log on. "We are blessed in this country to have a safe and abundant
food supply," said Governor Wise. "West Virginians need
to realize that a very large number of people on this planet go
to bed every night wondering where their next meal will come from.
We should all be grateful to those who produce and protect our nation's
food supply." "Although we do not have a problem of widespread hunger in this country, we must not take our food supply for granted," he said. "This nation is facing greater challenges in the agricultural arena than it ever has. The West Virginia Department of Agriculture (WVDA) is doing everything it can to make sure our citizens have a stable, safe food supply, regardless of what circumstance may arise." Commissioner Douglass noted that the WVDA's Animal Health Division is at the forefront of the effort to develop a national animal identification program, and that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has ranked the state's Meat and Poultry Inspection Division as the best in the country for the past 15 years. The WVDA Marketing and Development Division is also helping to fight hunger in this state. Marketing and Development Director Jean Smith said that her division's involvement with food banks and the school lunch program helps many people who are living on society's margins. "Our participation in the Farm to School Program benefits all school children by providing school systems with lower-cost food than they might otherwise be able to get," she said. "That's especially important to kids who must depend on school food programs for a large portion of their diets." For more information, contact Buddy Davidson, WVDA Communications
Officer at 304/558-3708 or by email at bdavidson@ag.state.wv.us. Contact: Buddy Davidson The West Virginia Department of Agriculture protects plant, animal and human health through a variety of scientific, regulatory and consumer protection programs, as mandated by state law. The Commissioner of Agriculture is one of six statewide elected officials in West Virginia. Currently, Commissioner Gus R. Douglass is the longest-serving agriculture commissioner in the nation. For more information, visit www.wvagriculture.org. |
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©2001, 2002 West Virginia Department of Agriculture, All Rights Reserved |
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