Milling & Baking News - March 1, 2016 - 10

Business X

Purchasing Seminar to feature
Kathleen Parker, Pat Mitchell
WASHINGTON - Kathleen Parker,
a political writer whose columns are
syndicated nationally by The Washington Post, will offer insights into
the rapidly changing political outlook at the 39th annual Purchasing
Seminar sponsored by Sosland Publishing Co.
The seminar will be held June 5-7
at the Sheraton Kansas City hotel at
Crown Center.
A columnist since 1987, Ms. Parker
has worked for five
publications
around
the country, including
The Weekly Standard,
Time, Town & Country,
Cosmopolitan and Fortune Small Business.
The 1993 winner of the Parker
H.L. Mencken Writing Award presented by The Baltimore Sun, Ms. Parker won a Pulitzer
Prize for commentary in 2010. She is
a regular panelist on NBC's "Meet
the Press" and MSNBC's "Hardball."
While describing herself politically as

"mostly right of center," Ms. Parker
became the target of criticism from
conservatives in 2008 when she characterized vice-presidential candidate
Sarah Palin as "clearly out of her
league" following a series of media
interviews by Governor Palin.
Other new presenters at the 2016
Purchasing Seminar will include
Patrick D. Mitchell, a
longtime
purchasing
executive for Keebler,
Kellogg, Wrigley and
Mars, who will discuss
how procurement has
evolved in recent years
and how it will change Mitchell
over the decade ahead.
"Between varied influences ranging from zero-based budgeting, ingredient market volatility and the
effects of the Food Safety Modernization Act, the requirements of purchasing excellence have grown more
demanding," said Joshua Sosland,
president of Sosland Publishing Co.
and editor of Milling & Baking News.

More than 1,700 sign petition on
biotechnology safety, benefits
ROCKVILLE, MD. - More than 1,700 people from the plant science community by
Feb. 24 had signed a petition related to the
safety and benefits of genetic engineering.
The petition advocates the position taken
by the Rockville-based American Society of
Plant Biologists that "supports the continued responsible use of genetic engineering
as an effective tool for advancing food security and reducing the negative environmental impacts of agriculture."
The petition stands in contrast to a 2013
statement from the European Network of
Scientists for Social and Environmental
Responsibility (ENSSER), Berlin, Germany, and signed by more than 300 independent researchers. The statement claimed
no global consensus exists on the safety
of bioengineered ingredients/G.M.O.s.
Restaurant chain Chipotle Mexican Grill,
Denver, in 2015 cited the ENSSER statement in justifying its campaign promoting its use of non-bioengineered/nonG.M.O. ingredients.
The petition in support of the American Society of Plant Biologists' position
said U.S. regulatory agencies such as
the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the
Food and Drug Administration and the
10 / March 1, 2016 XMilling & Baking News

Environmental Protection Agency demanded safety testing of new genetically
engineered food products.
"In contrast, conventional and organic
crops created by classical breeding undergo no safety testing," the petition said.
The petition added, "Since the commercial introduction of G.E. crops in 1996,
there has not been a single documented
instance of harm to human health."
The petition also said genetic engineering is an effective tool for advancing
food security and reducing agriculture's
negative impacts on the environment.
The petition said the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
anticipates the need for a 70% increase
in agricultural productivity to meet the
food, feed, fiber and fuel needs of the
ever-growing world's population.
"G.E. crops can provide major health
benefits to people throughout the world,
especially in developing countries where
food insecurity and malnutrition are still
prevalent," the petition said.
A letter that appeared in the Feb. 19 issue of the journal Science referred to the
petition and carried the headline "Plant
scientists: G.M. technology is safe." The

"The 2016 Purchasing Seminar promises to provide insights into what will
drive ingredient markets in the year
ahead, how the economic and political landscape is changing as well as
ways the ground beneath purchasing
executives' feet is steadily shifting."
Other confirmed topics and speakers at the 2016 seminar include grains
and global food demand, Steve Freed,
ADM Investor Services, Inc.; wheat
and world prospects for new crop,
Bill Lapp, Advanced Economic Solutions; feed grains and millfeed, Ankush Bhandari, The Gavilon Group
L.L.C; world wheat and the impact on
markets, Drew Lerner, World Weather, Inc.; sugar/sweeteners, Craig Ruffolo, McKeany-Flavell Co.; edible oils
and shortening, Paul Meyers, Foresight Commodity Services, Inc.; and
energy markets, Tim Statts, Schneider
Electric. Additionally, breakout sessions will be offered on the subjects
of dairy, spices, nuts, proteins, risk
management, eggs, cocoa and fruit.
For registration information, please
contact Christina Sullivan at (816) 7561000 or csullivan@sosland.com. Information about the seminar also may be found
at www.purchasingseminar.com. MBN

letter said the A.S.P.B., the petition signers
and other scientists in governmental and
scientific organizations throughout the
world show a consensus: "Current use of
genetic modification technology for crops
is safe and effective, and future use should
be guided by scientific evidence."
The letter also said arguments from the
anti-G.M.O. side often are founded on unsound science, such as a rat study that was
retracted later. Members of the Carnegie
Institution for Science, the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center and the National Laboratory of Genomic for Biodiversity
in Mexico signed the letter in Science.
The letter sought to counteract the 2013
statement from ENSSER. Besides Chipotle, The Non-GMO Project, Bellingham,
Wash., a third-party verification and labeling entity for non-G.M.O. food and
products, also cites the ENSSER statement, according to the letter.
"Commercial entities have seized upon
ENSSER's statements," the letter said.
The ENSSER statement was featured
in an article carrying the headline "No
scientific consensus on G.M.O. safety"
that appeared in the Jan. 24, 2015, issue
of Environmental Sciences Europe. The
article said the "scarcity and contradictory nature" of published scientific data
prevents claims of the safety of bioengineered ingredients/G.M.O.s. MBN
bakingbusiness.com / world-grain.com

http://www.purchasingseminar.com http://www.bakingbusiness.com http://www.world-grain.com

Milling & Baking News - March 1, 2016

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