Washington, DC
May 1, 2003
Food and Agriculture Experts to
Lead Industry Discussions in Washington, D.C.
The Biotechnology Industry
Organization’s (BIO) annual convention,
BIO 2003, to be
held in Washington, D.C. June 22-25, will bring together
international food and agriculture experts to discuss advances
and issues in agricultural biotechnology.
BIO 2003 is the world’s largest biotechnology gathering and will
feature 25 tracks of programming, including sessions on policy,
business development, science and regulatory affairs. The
convention will also host a two-day HealthFest on the National
Mall; forums on bioethics, global health and patient
advocacy; a two-day NIH Director’s Lecture Series; 345,000
square feet of exhibit space; a series of receptions at
Washington landmarks; and a BIO TV Studio and media center,
complete with two press conference rooms.
A sample of key food and agriculture speakers includes Dr. Bobby
Acord, administrator for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service; Roger Beachy,
president of the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center; Dr.
Lester Crawford, deputy commissioner at the Food
and Drug Administration; Stephen Johnson, assistant
administrator for Prevention, Pesticides and Toxic Substances at
the Environmental Protection Agency; Dr. Stuart L. Pimm, Doris
Duke Chair of Conservation Ecology, Nicholas School of
Environment and Earth Studies at Duke University; and Dr.
Florence Wambugu, chief executive officer of A Harvest Biotech
Foundation International.
Key agricultural biotechnology topics that will be highlighted
at BIO 2003 include:
- The role of agricultural
biotechnology in developing countries.
- The U.S. regulatory framework
for agricultural biotechnology and animal biotechnology.
- New technologies that may
affect the food industry and consumers, including healthier
foods and nutriceuticals, better processing food ingredients
and new flavors and fragrances.
- Roundtable discussion on
science-based regulatory policies in the United States for
agricultural biotechnology.
- Techniques for growing
therapeutic proteins in plants improved through biotechnology.
Food and agriculture experts that
will lead industry discussions at BIO 2003 include:
- Regulators from the U.S.
Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Agriculture Research
Service (ARS) and the Animal and Plant Health Inspection
Service (APHIS); the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA);
the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Center for Veterinary
Medicine (CVM) and Center for Food Safety and Applied
Nutrition (CFSAN); and the Office of Science and Technology
Policy.
- Corporate leaders from the
food and agriculture and biotechnology industries including
Dow AgroSciences, DuPont Agriculture and Nutrition, Monsanto,
Nestle USA, PlantGenix, Inc., ProLinia, Inc., and the Scotts
Company.
- Academics from leading
institutions such as Duke University, Harvard University, Iowa
State University, University of Pennsylvania and Vanderbilt
University.
- Scientists from top research
institutes including the National Cancer Institute and the
Donald Danforth Plant Science Center.
- International representatives
from A Harvest Biotech Foundation International, the Kenya
Industrial Property Institute and the National African Farmers
Union.
BIO represents more than 1,000
biotechnology companies, academic institutions, state
biotechnology centers and related organizations in all 50 U.S.
states and 33 other nations. BIO members are involved in the
research and development of health-care, agricultural,
industrial and environmental biotechnology products.
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