September 8, 2014 | Robert Puro

Only two days remain to obtain discounted registration for the 3rd Annual Seedstock Sustainable Agriculture Innovation Conference: “Reintegrating Ag: Local Food Systems and the Future of Cities”.

The event, to be held Tuesday and Wednesday, November 11-12, at the UCLA Anderson School of Management, will focus on the economic, environmental and community benefits that result from the development of a robust local food infrastructure.

Day 1 of the conference will be comprised of an urban farming field trip on which attendees will get a sneak peak at Los Angeles’ first multi-faceted food production business incubator for local entrepreneurs along with a tour of a blossoming 1.5-acre high school campus urban farming operation in Pasadena and a visit to a hydroponic shipping container farm in the L.A. Art District.

On Day 2 (Wednesday, Nov. 12, 2014) of the conference, attendees will convene at the UCLA Anderson School of Management in Los Angeles for a series of panels and breakout sessions that will address the definition, economic impact, role, long-term benefits, challenges, and solutions associated with the development of a vigorous local food system.

Register now! – http://seedstockconference.eventbrite.com

In complement to the keynote presentation on the importance of developing local food systems in cities and counties across California and the U.S. to be delivered by A.G. Kawamura, former Secretary of Agriculture for the State of California, the two-day program will offer a series of panels including:

– Breaking through the Industrial Agriculture Model – A look at solutions that have the potential to enable local food producers to effectively compete with the industrial agriculture model;

– The Potential of Controlled Environment Ag in Cities – from Hydroponics to Aquaponics – an examination of how various indoor growing technologies can increase the supply of and grow the market for local food in cities;

– Policy to Bolster Local Food Systems – An exploration on how policy can support the growth of urban agriculture and strengthen the local food system;

– Innovation, Entrepreneurship and Investment in the Local Food Market – an investigation of the various business acceleration and investment routes that startups, from new farmers to digital technology solutions providers, can take to launch their businesses; and

– Reintegrating Agriculture into Cities – An investigation into how entrepreneurs and city officials are working to increase urban agriculture endeavors in cities via school gardens, community gardens, for profit urban farming companies and more

The program, organized by Seedstock, a social venture working to foster sustainability and innovation in agriculture, has been formulated to provide a starting point for any and all cities looking for a roadmap to grow and enhance their local food systems. The deadline to purchase tickets at the “early bird” price ends September 10. For additional information pertaining to the event, ticket prices, program speakers, and registration, please visit:

http://seedstockconference.eventbrite.com

Confirmed Speakers:

A.G. Kawamura – Former Secretary of the California Department of Food and Agriculture and Co-chair of the Solutions from the Land Dialogue
Mark Glassock – Director of Special Projects Los Angeles Neighborhood Land Trust
Michel Algazi – Chairman and CEO of Freshology and founder of Food Centricity
Mud Baron – Project Director at Muir Ranch
Daniel Allen – CEO at Farmscape
Colin Archipley – Co-founder of Archi’s Acres and the Veterans Sustainable Agriculture Training Program
Erik Cutter – Managing Director of Alegria Fresh
Clare Fox – Director of Policy and Innovation, the Los Angeles Food Policy Council
Erik Oberholzer – Co-founder of Tender Greens
Dwight Detter – Local Forager for Whole Foods Market
Kimberly Kessler – Policy and Special Programs Director, Resnick Program for Food Law & Policy
Robert Egger – Founder and President of L.A. Kitchen
John Mesko – Executive Director at Sustainable Farming Association of Minnesota
Erika Block – Founder and CEO at Local Orbit
Rickey Smith – Founder of Urban Green
Sasha Kanno – Founder of Long Beach Local and Farm Lot 59
Rob Trice – Founder of Better Food Ventures and Co-founder of The Mixing Bowl
Nurit Katz – Chief Sustainability Officer at UCLA
David Rosenstein – Founder of EVO Farm and Chairman of the Aquaponics Association – Western Region