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TIMELY TOPICS
In 1924 Rockbridge County had over 100,000 apple trees of bear ing age devoted to commercial production and 119 acres of commercial tomatoes. Through the 1960s there were more than a dozen commercial creameries up and down Virginia’s U.S. 11 corridor that sold milk, butter, and other dairy products to local grocers.
Today, Rockbridge has fewer than 1,000 fruit trees engaged in any sort of commercial pursuit, grows less than 15 acres of tomatoes and virtually all of our dairy products come from the Midwest. The apple, tomato, and dairy production and processing have been determined by economies of scale. Our country has achieved staggering success in providing a huge variety of foods very inexpensively. In 1924, the inf lation-adjusted cost of a Thanksgiving turkey expressed in today’s dollars was over $100. Today, our grocers give turkeys away with the purchase of $50 worth of groceries.
With our food production occurring at-scale and concentrated to maximize efficiency and minimize cost we find our food system infrastructure has numerous problems, one of which is vulnerability to catastrophic circumstances both humancaused and otherwise.
How we address these vulnerabilities and plan for circumstances that could compromise our food processing and supply chains will be the focus of a networking event on Thursday March 6, starting at 5:30 p.m., at the Advancement Foundation Building at 245 W. 21st St., Buena Vista.
The event is hosted by both the Advancement Foundation in Buena Vista and the local chapter of AFCEA (Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association), which is a member-based, nonprofit 501(c)6 organization, devoted to encouraging innovation and advancing technology to ensure preparedness and security.
AFCEA was officially formed in 1946 as the country demobilized from World War II and returning soldiers and industry leaders began to appreciate the on-going need for collaborative information sharing between government and private industry to address security concerns for the United States. Today, AFCEA strives to provide a professional and ethical foundation for networking and educational opportunities that enables military, government, industry and academia to align technology to meet the needs of those who serve in critical areas, which include defense, security, cyber and intelligence.
The networking event will begin with brief presentations by a panel including Matt Lohr, Virginia secretary of agriculture and Forestry; Dr. Amy Nagy, a biomedical research and development specialist; and Col. David Garner, commander of Information Operations Support Center, 91st Cyber Brigade, Virginia National Guard. Sen. Mark Warner will offer comment through a video message specifically for this event. Networking and table discussions will follow the panel presentations.
The event is free with heavy hors d’oeuvres, non-alcoholic drinks and cash-only bar provided. Anyone wishing to attend can register by calling the Advancement Foundation at (540) 572-4542 or email nickie@theadvancementfoundation. org.
Reminder: sign up for the fruit tree grafting two-part clinic discussed in the Feb. 12 Timely Topics. Complete information and sign-up is available at rockbridge.ext. vt.edu or email [email protected] or call me, Tom Stanley, at (540) 463-4734.
