Dr. Anthony A. Frank, president of Colorado State University, called for 'common ground', addressing participants of the NIAA (National Institute for Animal Agriculture) annual conference in Denver, Colorado (March 26 - 29, 2012).
Feedstuffs.com reports:
What's needed is "common ground" on which everyone can meet, Frank said, suggesting nothing would be more of that kind of "ground" than abundant, affordable safe food.
That's what consumers want, that's what producers want and that's what regulators want, he said. "There's a lot of good middle ground."
This sets up a "discussion" that avoids a compromise in animal welfare or environmental stewardship or decisions where safe food is not abundant or affordable, he said.
Producers need to be proactive and sit down with consumers and regulators and "change the conversation" to one of "shared values," Frank said.
He said academia have an important role in this conversation because it has resources to create partnerships and "recruit" other parties to the table.
Consumers, producers, regulators and academia "sitting together" and developing "common ground". What better way could there be to describe the TAFS forum? All welcome to join in.
The TAFS forum is seeking new members. If you are interested, please contact us and describe what you might be able to contribute to the TAFS forum. We look forward to hearing from you.
