Progress 07/01/21 to 06/30/23
Outputs
Target Audience:The FoodFORWARD Research Symposium and pre-conference Farm-to-Institution (F2I) Summit were designed to bring together people at Clemson Univesityconducting researchin every element of the food system to stimulate conversation towards identifying points of synergy and strategies for addressing this question. The three-day event occurred September 13-15, 2022 at Clemson University and drew participants from academia, Cooperative Extension, local food producers, food retailers, food service providers, government and non-profit entities. Changes/Problems:This was a conference grant. We had to postpone the conference twice due to COVID-19. Despite these timeline setbacks, it was a highly successful conference overall. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?The FoodFORWARD research symposium took place on September 15, 2022, in the Watt Family Innovation Center on the Clemson University Campus. The all-day event included four guest speaker addresses (keynote, a special topic, and two plenaries), an oral research brief session, poster session, and a rooftop networking session withlocally sourced foods held at the end of the conference. Approximately 103 people attended the conference (61% of those registered); of these, 91 people attended in person, and 12 participated remotely. Worth noting, the symposium date was moved twice due to Covid. The remote link was shared with each of the six Clemson University Research and Education Centers (REC) located across the state. In addition, fifteen invited guests attended representing academia, government agencies, private sector, and non-profit organizations interested in foods systems. Among these honored guests were representatives from the other South Carolina Land Grant University, South Carolina State University.Participants received training through the poster presentations, oral research presentations, and keynote and plenary speaker presentations, as well as content expert networking.These findings align with current high priority areas identified by federal, state and foundation sponsors which collectively seek a systems approach to improving community health and health equity through innovations in agriculture, sustainability, economic, social, and health practices and policies. The substantial participation and interest by multiple stakeholders and experts representing each element of the food system laysthe foundation for a robust and sustained engagement and opportunities for developing collaborative projects. Future events will focus on addressing specific topic areas in a work group format and leveraging expertise of each organization to create collaborative project plans and proposals for food systems research. A longer-term goal aims to establish a center or consortium that fosters novel and innovative research contributing to food, health, policy, and agriculture systems knowledge, supports community-based rural economic development, and serves as a clearinghouse for information dissemination. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?We have compiled a comprehensive Conference Proceedings document, video of conference, and powerpoint presentations by notable presentors and guest speakers. The proceedings are being distributed to participants, and available on our conference website: https://www.clemson.edu/cbshs/research/foodforward/index.html What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?
Nothing Reported
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
The major goals of the project were successfully achieved. The FoodFORWARD symposium attracted a diverse array of expertise and interest in food related research across the Clemson University campus. A total of 168 people registered for the conference including faculty, staff, and students from 5 colleges representing at least 17 departments, several academic centers and institutes, and extension offices and Research Education Centers (RECs) across the state. Forty-two people registered to present oral research briefs or research posters which fell into the following categories indicated by the presenter in the registration form. Shown below, these categories represent the 6 priority areas defined by the USDA AFRI Foundational and Applied Science Program. Abbreviated categories stated in full are plant health and production and plant products, bioenergy, natural resources and environment, and animal health and production and animal products. Sixty-seven percent of the presentations fell into two categories: 1) Food safety, nutrition and health, and 2) Agricultural economics and rural communities - with the former comprising the majority of the presentation topics.To understand the landscape of food related research interest and engagement across on and off campus affiliates, all registrants were asked questions in the registration form to assess: 1) Expertise and topics of interest for collaboration and 2) history and readiness for seeking funding in food related research. There isbroad and varied interest in the full spectrum of food system focus areas with seven areas appealing to 30-50% of the respondents. Of the 150 respondents, nearly half selected "food and nutrition security" and "health and nutrition" as topics of interest for collaboration (46% and 43%, respectively). Over a third selected "food policy" (38%) and "sustainable agriculture/climate change" (36%), and nearly a third of respondents selected "Extension/Knowledge Transfer" (30%), "Food Culture" (30%), and "Natural Resources Sustainability" (28%) as areas if interest for collaboration. Regarding history and readiness for seeking funding in food related research, a majority of respondents (68%) indicated being favorable to the possibility of applying for grant funding and 32% reported having past funding for food-related research. Fifty-nine percent of 66 respondents indicated they were currently conducting research in at least one of the food systems focus areas. Overall, the assessment shows that Clemson University includes expertise, interest and research activity across the entire spectrum of food system focus areas, and there is a strong desire to collaborate across multiple disciplines, especially in the areas of food and nutrition security, health, food policy, and sustainable agriculture and climate change. Several outcomes were measured to determine the success of the FoodFORWARD symposium in achieving 3 objectives. Attendees were voluntarily surveyed at the conclusion of the conference to learn, 1) awareness of food related research projects outside of their discipline, 2) willingness to collaborate, and 3) willingness to form and participate in an interdisciplinary team dedicated to sustained activities that foster cross-college and cross-sector collaboration. The symposium provided a successful platform for learning about new projects and opportunities for collaboration. Forty-six percent of respondents reported learning between 1-3 projects outside of their expertise and 52% reported learning about 4 or more. Thirty-eight percent attended for the purpose of networking and identifying possible collaborative opportunities and 26% attended because they were compelled by the goals of the conference. Support for sustained engagement is evident in 92% responding that they would like to receive information via a FoodFORWARD listserv and 70% would participate in a working group(s) that fosters food related initiatives and research. Seventy-six percent felt the symposium should be held every year while 24% preferred a two-year cycle. Conference quality measures indicated most respondents were very satisfied with the selection of speakers, topics, format and structure, and the overall experience of the conference. Below is asummary table of conference outcomes and quality measures. Overall conference experience 54 77% very satisfied Conference speakers/presenters 76% very satisfied Conference topics 70% very satisfied Conference format/structure 69% very satisfied Most cited comments for improvement 10 More time for poster viewing, fewer guest speakers, and more time for verbal research briefs The F-2-I summit took place two days prior to the Food Forward Conference, on September 12-13, 2022. The purpose of the event was to discuss ways to equitably and sustainably source more local foods into college campus dining. The event drew 120 participants across a wide range of expertise including presentations by academic food system and agriculture experts, extension experts, food producers, corporate food service representatives, and health care providers. Presentations and discussions focused on the following themes: 1) how land grant institutions and extension can support local and regional food systems, 2) how local food can build healthy communities and increase food and nutrition security in the context of climate change, 3) building campus engagement, 4) barriers and opportunities for sourcing and procuring local foods for institutions, 5) barriers and opportunities for increasing supplier diversity and 6) Barriers, opportunities, and lived experiences of local farmers. This pre-summit event was sponsored by Aramark and was organized to synergistically overlap with key themes and participantsfrom the Food Forward conference.
Publications
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Awaiting Publication
Year Published:
2023
Citation:
Proceedings of the Food Forward Research Symposium and Farm-to-Institution Summit, Clemson University, September 13-15, 2022. Compiled by Dr. Mary Beth Johnstone, College of Behavioral, Social and Health Sciences, Clemson University,https://www.clemson.edu/cbshs/research/foodforward/index.html
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Progress 07/01/21 to 06/30/22
Outputs
Target Audience:The primarytarget audience for the FoodFORWARD symposium are Clemson University faculty, staff and students who are interested in or actively engaged in food systems research and outreach for the purpose of: 1) Learning about the breadth and depth of food systems research, extension and outreach occurring across Clemson University campuses, 2) Fostering cross-disciplinary and cross-sector collaborations and partnerships, especially those that align agriculture, rural economic development, and health & well-being, and 3) Developing the foundation and infrastructure for a sustained, inter-disciplinary food systems center at Clemson University. In addition, community stakeholders and representatives from South Carolina State University will be invited to facilitate and expand collaboration for food research intiatives across land grant institutions and communites in South Carolina. The FoodFORWARD symposium has been promoted to the Clemson University audience through digital announcements posted on web portals, emails (listservs and direct), phone calls, social media and announcements at other Clemson sponsored events. Stakeholders and South Carolina State University guests were invited individually through email invitation. Changes/Problems: The FoodFORWARD Symposium was postponed 6 months due to Covid 19; this change resulted in a delay of the rate of expenditure and timeline for meeting proposal objectives and goals. Because it has been 2.5 years since the inaugural 2019 FoodFORWARD conference, we decided to change the Table Talk format-designed to build on the conference outcomes from the previous year- to a three-minute talk format aimed at reporting current food systems research occurring at Clemson. The steering committee decided this format would be more effective towards facilitating cross-college collaboration. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?
Nothing Reported
How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?
Nothing Reported
What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?By the next reporting period, the symposium event will be implemented. Data collected about attendee expertise, current funding status, research and collaborative interests, knowledge gained at the event, and other symposium effectivity measures will be compiled along with presentation abstracts into a Symposium Proceedings document. This document will be disseminated to all attendees and to the public via publicly accessible Clemson University digital news links andpermanently archived in the University documents portal. An inter-disciplinary food systems working group will be formed and will develop a strategic plan for sustained engagement and targeted goals and activities including submitting a proposal to the USDA Rural Econmic Development Program within a year of its formation.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
Goal 1: Increase awareness of community-focused food, health and rural development research occurring at Clemson University. IMPACT DESCRIPTION The FoodFORWARD symposium aims to bring together researchers, staff and students among the different Clemson University colleges and extention to share their work relating to local food systems and their impact on community health, well-being and rural economic development. The over-all impact of this event will result in an intra-collegiate working group aimed to identify assets, gaps and opportunites in collaborative research, forge cross-sector and inter-collegiate partnerships, and develop the foundation for an interdisciplinary center for food systems research at Clemson University. Because the FoodFORWARD symposium was postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic, activities and accomplishments are restricted to planning and coordination efforts. To date, the following tasks have been accomplished under Goal 1. A steering committee has been formed and meets regularly Keynote and plenary speakers have been identified and contracted Symposium venue has been contracted Symposium agenda has been determined A promotional campaign has been developed and is underway Registration has been activated and data about registrants contact information, research interests, expertise, current funding status and desire to collaborate is being collected. These data will be compiled and disseminated in a symposium Proceedings document.
Publications
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