Pre and Post Conference Workshops

Pre-Conference Tour: Extension Section Chesapeake Bay Tour

This is a ticketed event. The cost to attend is $100.
Saturday, August 3, 8:00 am - 2:00 pm

Pre-Conference Workshop: The Debut of USDA's New National Food Study to Support Research on Health and Obesity, Hunger, and Nutrition Assistance Policy

This is a ticketed event and will take place off-site at the USDA-ERS offices. Transportation will not be provided.
The cost to attend is $20.
Saturday, August 3, 8:30 am - 4:30 pm

This day-long workshop will provide insight on:

• Reason for the new survey
• Information collected and methodologies used
• Integration of SNAP administrative records to enhance sampling design
• Use of proprietary data to add information on food environment of the respondents
• Quality and completeness of the collected data
• Data access and use protocols
• Initial research results on Dietary and Nutrient Knowledge, Food Purchase Patterns, Prices, and Food Access and Security, including users' experience working with the data

Agenda:
8:30 - 8:45 am        Continental Breakfast

8:45 - 9:00 am        Welcome Introduction: Why Food APS?
                               Mary Bohman, USDA-ERS

9:00 - 9:45 am        What Did the Survey Collect?
                                Nicholas Redel and John Kirlin, Mathematica Policy Research, Inc.

9:45 - 10:45 am      Sampling Design and Implementation
                                John Hall and Nancy Cole, Mathematica Policy Research, Inc.

10:45 - 11:00 am    Break

11:00 - 11:45 am    The National Food Study Geography Component
                                Craig Gundersen, University of Illinois; Parke Wilde, Tufts University

11:45 am - 12:45 pm  Lunch

12:45 - 1:45 pm       Data Quality: Survey Response Rates and the Non-Response Bias Study
                                 John Hall, Mathematica Policy Research, Inc.

1:45 - 2:30 pm         Data Quality: Characteristics of Households and Food Acquisitions
                                 Nancy Cole, Mathematica Policy Research, Inc.

2:30 - 2:45 pm         Break

2:45 - 3:30 pm         Data Access and Use Protocols
                                 Mark Denbaly, USDA-ERS

3:30 - 4:30 pm         Early Results: Dietary and Nutrient Knowledge, Food Purchase Patterns, Prices, and
                                 Food Access and Security
                                 Various USDA-ERS Economists

Post-Conference Workshop: Best Practices of the USDA NIFA Projects: Food System and Food Security

This is a ticketed event. The cost to attend is $80 for professionals and $50 for early career professionals.
Wednesday, August 7, 7:00 am - 12:30 pm

This workshop will showcase best practices in integrated and multidisciplinary research, teaching, and outreach of food system and food security projects that have been funded by USDA NIFA.

There are a limited number of scholarships available for early career professionals and developing country scholars. This scholarship will cover the workshop registration fee. If you are interested in applying for a scholarship to attend this workshop, please submit a copy of your CV and 250 word description of what you expect to learn by attending this workshop, and how you expect to use the information received to further develop your own career to Dr. Kathleen Liang at cliang@uvm.edu.

Post-Conference Tour: Exploring Federal Alternatives: Tours of USDA and Other Agencies

This is a ticketed event. The cost to attend is $50 for professionals and $35 for students.
Wednesday, August 7, 8:00 am - 3:30 pm

Post-Conference Workshop: How to Get and Get the Most Out of Federal Statistical Microdata

This is a ticketed event and will take place off-site at the USDA-ERS offices. Transportation will not be provided.
The cost to attend is $25.
Wednesday, August 7, 8:00 am - 4:30 pm

Post-Conference Workshop: Economic Analysis and Food Safety: The Food Safety Modernization Act

This is a ticketed event and will take place off-site at the USDA-ERS offices. This cost to attend is $35.
Wednesday, August 7, 8:30 am - 5:00 pm

In January 2011, the most extensive food safety legislation since the 1950s for Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-regulated food was signed into law. The Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) affects all stages of the food production/ marketing system.  It includes on-farm regulation of produce production, extends HACCP-like requirements to all food facilities, makes importers responsible for verifying that foreign suppliers comply with U.S. food safety standards, and lays the groundwork for more extensive traceability systems across the U.S. food supply.

Agricultural economists from the USDA Economic Research Service and FDA, with the AAEA Food Safety and Nutrition Section, have organized a 1-day workshop to start discussion on ways in which economic research can contribute to evaluation of this new set of policies. The goal of the workshop is to identify economic research needs as well as data needs to support this work. FDA will provide an overview of FSMA and progress to date on its implementation. Speakers will include economists and food safety specialists from FDA, USDA, academia, and industry. Representatives from federal data and research funding agencies will also speak. Rapporteurs will help workshop participants synthesize discussion and identify areas of consensus on research and data needs.

For more information, please contact Linda Calvin at lcalvin@ers.usda.gov.

Post-Conference Workshop: How Will the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) Affect Agricultural Trade?

This is a ticketed event. The cost to attend is $20.
Wednesday, August 7, 9:00 am - 12:00 pm

The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) is a regional trade agreement that is currently being negotiated, considered the most significant trade initiative of the century. Unlike past agreements where the participating countries are already determined, TPP is structured such that any country willing to agree to the established rules can become a member in the future. As part of the agreement, countries are committed to a broad range of reforms that cover trade in goods, rules of origin, trade remedies, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, technical barriers to trade, trade in services, intellectual property, government procurement, competition policy, and labor and environmental standards. In November 2011, the leaders of the nine TPP countries (Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Chile, Malaysia, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, Vietnam, and the United States) agreed upon the broad outlines of the agreement, and Canada, Japan, and Mexico announced their intentions to join the negotiations. In June 2012, Canada and Mexico were officially invited to join the TPP negotiations; Japan has yet to formally request to join the negotiations.

Although the 15th round of TPP negotiations took place on December 3-12 in New Zealand, little is known about the agreement and it potential effects on global agricultural trade. The primary objective of this workshop is to provide a forum where researchers, industry experts, market participants, and policy makers can increase their knowledge of TPP and its importance in eliminating barriers in agricultural trade.

The workshop will include two sessions consisting of general and technical presentations. One session will provide a general overview of TPP and its importance to agricultural trade addressing such topics as: What is the Trans-Pacific Partnership? How does TPP stand out among past trade agreements? What is the status of the TPP negotiations and Japan’s inclusion? The other will highlight analysis of how TPP will affect specific agricultural sectors.

Post-Conference Workshop: From Policy Research to National Policy Action: How You Can Make a Difference

This is a ticketed event. The cost to attend is $85.
Wednesday, August 7, 9:00 am - 3:00 pm