LINCOLN- Wars in Europe and the Middle East, a general increase in demand, and a changing climate are making food scarcer and costlier. Farmers in the United States believe they can fill the gap with the help of biotechnology, but will need the help of Congress and federal regulators. That was a key sentiment from panelists in the agriculture, business, government, law, and academia industries during a summit this past spring at UNL's Clayton Yeutter Insitute for International Trade and Finance, which produced a report based on these findings.

Panelists who spoke at the summit said they believe politicians need to speak more clearly during trade negotiations about the urgency and science behind genetically engineered crops and meat, and to make clear to partners that the biotechnical process behind these products is very similar to natural growth processes. Panelists also highlighted the need for the general public to understand that biotechnological advances need to keep pace with the global population, which increases yearly while farmland decreases.

Jill O'Donnell, director of the Yeutter Institute, hosted the three-hour discussion in March, saying that the goal of it was to encourage freer discussions about the future of food production, especially amid shortages and high costs. One potential solution expressed at the meeting is the streamlining of the number of agencies responsible for biotech food regulations, which currently sits at three. "Too many agencies involved in different parts of the process," said O'Donnell, "Overlapping authorities."

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