'Feeding the world', new series of debates from B·Debate and the CCCB

These debates, open to the general public, aim to address society’s concerns regarding how we should eat, the safety of the products we buy and whether biotechnology can help create a healthier and more socially just food system

16/10/2012

 

In recent decades, food production has evolved into a complex system of industrial processes as a result of both the need to supply an ever-growing population and because of the business opportunities offered by the new globalised markets. Accordingly, the distance between producer and consumer has steadily been increasing and we know less and less about the products we are eating. The false abundance of a market that offers products from all around the world tends to conceal processes that often give rise to doubts about the chemical substances used in food conservation or to enhance flavour or appearance. The consumer’s knowledge of, and decision-making capacities about food are undermined by a barrage of contradictory information and difficulties in understanding the complex technological aspects of food production.

With the aim of contributing towards the debate about the way we eat, B·Debate —a joint initiative of Biocat and the "la Caixa" Foundation— and the Centre de Cultura Contemporània de Barcelona (CCCB) organize the cycle of lectures Feeding the World. Security and Sostenibility in Global Food Production. The debates are open to the general public and will be held on 22 and 29 October and 5 and 8 November 2012 at the CCCB.

Monday 22 October
Do We Know What We Eat? Challenges of Food Security and Healthy Eating
Andreu Palou, professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at the Balearic Islands University
Moderator: Pere Puigdomènech, research fellow at the Council for Scientific Research (CSIC) and director of the Agrigenomics Research Centre (CSIC-IRTA-UAB-UB)

Monday 29 October
Agricultural Biodiversity: Opportunities for Sustainable Development
Stefano Padulosi, senior scientist at Biodiversity International, an agency member of the consortium Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR)
Moderator: Enric I. Canela, professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at the University of Barcelona

Monday 5 November
The Role of Biotechnology in a New Food Model
Wilhem Gruissem, professor of Plant Biotechnology at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology
Moderator: Pere Arús, scientific director at the Institute of Agrifood Research and Technology (IRTA)

Thursday 8 November
Food Modernity: Between Overabundance and Insecurity
Jesús Contreras, professor of Social Anthropology at the University of Barcelona and director of the Observatori de l’Alimentació (Food Observatory)
Moderator: Toni Massanés, general director of the Alícia Foundation

The debates on 22 October and 8 November will he held in Catalan. Those on 29 October and 5 November will be in Italian and English, respectively, with simultaneous translation into Catalan.

Date: 22 and 29 October, 5 and 8 November 2012
Time: 7.30 pm
Venue: CCCB • C/ Montalegre, 5 • Barcelona (map)

Advance sales at the ticket desk of the CCCB and from Telentrada (Phone 902 101 212 or www.telentrada.com). Price per session: 3 euros. Under-25s and senior citizens: 2.50 euros. Friends of the CCCB, the unwaged and under-16s: free of charge.

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