The Batsheva de Rothschild Workshop on
Avoiding the coming food security crisis:
Novel solutions at the intersection of agriculture, environment and health
November 9-10, 2022 Tzuba Hotel
The purpose of the workshop is to advance an evidence-based understanding of how best governments, international organizations, companies, and private non-profits can address looming food security challenges in Israel and the world more broadly.
Population and income growth will fuel substantial expansion in food demand in the years ahead, while the climate changes and biodiversity loss underscore the sustainability challenges of supply expansion following a business-as-usual model. At the same time, a sharp expansion in global food insecurity arising from the economic disruptions resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic has laid bare inequities within and among countries that imperil food security advances.
The workshop is intended for multidisciplinary stakeholders from academia and public and private sectors. The active participation of scientists, policymakers, and private sector leaders from Israel and other countries will enable cross-fertilization across scientific disciplines and across countries. Popular media coverage will draw the attention of additional stakeholders and the general public to the food security challenge and the policy actions needed to address it. The workshop will include invited presentation sessions, a policy roundtable, and informal poster and discussion sessions.
The workshop is funded by the Batsheva de Rothschild Fund for the Advancement of Science in Israel, and by the Hebrew University Authority for Research and Development, Research Center for Agriculture, Environment and Natural Resources, and the Center for Agricultural Economic Research.
Program
Wednesday November 9
Session 1: Food production (Chair: Ram Fishman, Tel-Aviv University)
- David Blakeslee, New York University, Abu Dhabi: Irrigation and the Spatial Pattern of Structural Transformation in India (with Aaditya Dar, Ram Fishman, Samreen Malik, Heitor Pelegrina and Karan Singh)
[abstract] [presentation]
- Iddo Kan, Hebrew University: Food Self-Sufficiency in Israel under Restricted Water and Land Resources (with Yehuda Slater, Israel Finkelshtain and Aron Troen)
- Ayal Kimhi, Hebrew University: Resilience to Extreme Heat in Milk Production: Evidence from Israel (with Claire Palandri, Ram Fishman, Eyal Frank, Yaniv Lavon and Gabi Adin)
- Michal Eliezer, Tel-Aviv University: The Effect of Training in Israel on Smallholder Farmers Productivity
Session 2: Food security and the environment (Chair: Yael Kachel, Israeli Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development)
- Ram Fishman, Tel-Aviv University: Does Drip Irrigation Reduce Water Usage? Experimental Evidence from India (with Xavier Gine and Hanan G. Jacoby)
- Beáta Itin-Shwartz, Hebrew University: Balanced Fertilization and Limited Productivity: Evidence from Indian Plots
- Yehuda Slater, Hebrew University: The Economic Cost of Wastewater Quality Standards (with Israel Finkelshtain, Ami Reznik and Iddo Kan)
- Alon Shepon, Tel Aviv University and the Israeli Forum for Sustainable Nutrition: What Lessons Can an Agroecological, Self-Sufficient Farm in Northern Israel Teach Us About Food Security? (with Alik Pelman, Sigal Tepper, and Jerke de Vries)
[abstract] [presentation]
Session 3: Food consumption and health (Chair: Israel Finkelshtain, Hebrew University)
- Jutta Roosen, Technical University of Munich: Better Food Choices for Health: The Results from an Online Experiment (with Herdis Agovi, Matthias Staudigel, Christina M. Neubig)
- Adam Dvir, Hebrew University: How Nutritional Information in the Media Affects Food Demand? (with Betty Schwartz, Iddo Kan and Israel Finkelshtain)
- Eyal Ert, Hebrew University: Self-Reported vs. Actual Food Waste at the Household Level
- Tamar Makov, Ben-Gurion University: Digital Food Sharing and Food Insecurity in the Covid-19 Era
Thursday November 10
Session 4: Poverty, hunger, and nutritional insecurity (Chair: Ofir Rubin, Ben Gurion University)
- Rusty Tchernis, Georgia State University, IZA and NBER: A Flexible Model of Food Security: Estimation and Implications for Prediction (with Will Davis, Christian Gregory, and Jose Xilau)
![[abstract]](https://economics.agri.huji.ac.il/sites/default/files/agri_economics/files/13.tchernis_abstract.jpg?m=1669723122){kind=link}
- Naama Yaroslaviz Dgania, Ariel University: The Cost of a Healthy Food Basket for Families with Children in Israel (with Vered Kaufman Shriqi)
- Elliot Berry, Hebrew University: Promoting Resilience in Combatting Food Insecurity using the Sociotype Framework
- Rico Ihle, Wageningen University: Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine Increased Synchronization of Global Commodity Prices (with Oleg Nivievskiy, Ziv Bar-Nahum and Ofir Rubin)
Session 5: Poster session (Chair: Ziv Bar-Nahum, Israeli Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development)
- Anton Fennec, Hebrew University: Not Entirely Unlike Fertilizers, Foliar Fungus Pseudozyma aphidis Promotes Plant Growth (with Gilli Breuer, Druv Aditya Srivastava, Neta Rotem and Maggie Levy)
[abstract] [presentation]
- Rotem Zelingher, International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA): Analysis and Forecast of the Global Price of Agricultural Commodities: A Comprehensive Integration of Interpretable Machine Learning and Econometric Approaches
[abstract] [presentation]
- Eric Calloway, Gretchen Swanson Center for Nutrition: Final Outcomes of a Novel Food Insecurity Related Measurement Development Project (with Leah Carpenter, Tony Gargano, Julia Sharp, and Amy Yaroch)
Session 6: Nutritional security, science and semantics (Chair: Iddo Kan, Hebrew University)
- Martin Caraher, City, University London: Food Security: Are Food Charity and ‘Corporate welfare’ Schemes Undermining the Right Right to Food?
- Tadayoshi Masuda, Kindai University: Measuring Food Security in Japan: An Index of Dependence on Imports and Importing Country Risk
- Or Perets-Ohana, Ariel University: Experiences Knowledge, Attitudes, and Perceived Barriers Towards Food Insecurity Among Health Professionals (with Vered Kaufman Shriqi)
- Amy Yaroch, Gretchen Swanson Center for Nutrition: Policy and environmental approaches to improve health among low-income populations in the United States: Making the case for financial incentives
Session 7: Boserup vs. Malthus – What does the future hold? (Chair: Vered Kaufman Shriqi, Ariel University)
- Itzik Mizrahi, Ben Gurion University: Future Perspectives of Balancing Food Security and Environmental Impacts
- Gidon Eshel, Bard College: And Yet it Moves: Can Beef be Useful After All?
- Sigal Tepper, Tel Hai College: The Environmental Footprint Associated with Dietary Patterns in Israel (with Kerem Avital, Meidad Kissinger and Danit Shahar)
- Aron Troen, Hebrew University: Measuring Food Security today in order to Preparte for Future Crises
[abstract] [presentation]
Session 8: Policy roundtable (Chair: Nir Ohad, Tel-Aviv University)
- Ayal Kimhi, Hebrew University and Shoresh Institution for Socioeconomic Research
- Noga Kronfeld-Schor, Tel-Aviv University
- Alon Tal, Tel-Aviv University and Chair of Knesset Subcommittee for Environmental and Climate Impacts on Health
- Roni Strier, Haifa University and National Council of Food Security
- Ronit Endevelt, Haifa University and Israeli Ministry of Health
- Aeyal Gross, Tel-Aviv University
The workshop is funded by:
- The Israeli Academy for Science and Humanities
- The Research Center for Agriculture, Environment and Natural Resources (Hebrew University)
- The Center for Agricultural Economic Research (Hebrew University)
- The Authority for Research and Development (Hebrew University)
