Ray Starling addressing food and agriculture issues

Reconnecting Greenstone Links Keynote Speaker

Ray Starling, author of Farmers vs. Foodies, spoke at Greenstone’s employee meeting addressing current food and agriculture issues. Greenstone’s employee meeting “Reconnecting Greenstone Links” is the first in-person employee meeting since November 2019, due to the pandemic. For many employees, this meeting gave them a chance to meet their peers for the very first time.

Discussing issues in Food and Agriculture

This year, Greenstone invited Ray Staring, author of Farmers versus Foodies, to speak at their employee meeting. The intent was for Ray to address current issues facing the food and agriculture industry.

 

His book states, “the outside forces forging the future of farming and food.” Ray said that he began his career to advocate for modern agriculture and modern farming. As his career advanced, he saw the need to do this on the social, political, and policy sides. Hence, how the idea of his book came about. He continues to address the current food and agriculture issues.

How do we impact food and agriculture issues?

Today, our society links the ag industry to only farmers. When in fact, there are many companies and services that impact agriculture. During Ray’s keynote, he said that many ideas that come from the foodies are going to make food more expensive and food insecure. Ray explained the median household income in the United States will be unable to support an increase in food prices. This is because they are already at the margins in terms of what they can afford.

 

Ray starling addressing employees on food and agriculture issues

“At the end of the day, professionals in the ag industry, including those in software, have a moral obligation to feed people,” stated Ray Starling during his presentation to Greenstone employees. “You’re not designing software. You are helping to do the noblest thing that a person can do. And that is to give someone else something to eat.”

Take-away on Food & Agriculture Issues

With new and emerging trends, many people across the world focus on where their food originates. There are many individuals who have a significant influence on consumers. The fact of the matter is, these “influencers” are not food industry experts. During Ray’s presentation at Greenstone’s employee meeting, he gave an explanation that the foodies are the outsiders. Whereas, the farmers are the insiders in the agricultural industry. Despite this battle between the two, Starling’s book looks at the future of farming. In addition, it discusses who is shaping the future of agriculture and what will come of it, if consumers listen to influencers.

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