352-273-2598 ashleynmcleod@ufl.edu

Biotech Literacy DayPIE Center research will take the stage on May 11 as part of a daylong workshop focusing on communicating about biotechnology, or the science behind genetically modified food.

Florida Agricultural Biotechnology Literacy and Communication Day, held on May 11 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Emerson Alumni Hall, will bring together experts in biotechnology and communications to discuss how to connect with audiences that largely do not trust the science.

Assistant professor Joy Rumble will speak about the PIE Center’s public opinion survey results, which showed that while consumers are largely unsure about genetically modified foods, they want to learn more.

Other speakers include a Washington Post journalist, a Monsanto official, a representative from the USDA and several UF/IFAS faculty.

Kevin Folta, chair of the Horticultural Sciences Department, is a leading researcher in biotechnology and is organizing the event. Folta and Rumble collaborated on a webinar to discuss 2013 public opinion survey results about genetically modified food.

Registration is free and open to the public. Those not able to attend in person will be able to watch a live video stream.

The speakers:

  • Tamar Haspel — Washington Post journalist
  • Vance Crowe — Monsanto Company director of millennial engagement
  • Karl Haro von Mogel — USDA plant geneticist and science communicator
  • Joy Rumble — UF/IFAS PIE Center, Agricultural Education and Communication
  • Keith Schnieder — UF/IFAS Food Science and Human Nutrition professor
  • Curt Hannah — UF/IFAS Horticultural Sciences professor
  • Kevin Folta — UF/IFAS Horticultural Sciences professor and chair