Name: Factory Farms, Your Health and the Cancer Connection
Start: 2024-11-13T19:00:00-06:00
Location: Iowa City Public Library

Factory Farms, Your Health and the Cancer Connection

Iowa ranks second in the nation for cancer cases and it’s the only state where cancer rates are rising. Last year the Iowa Cancer Registry’s report pointed a finger at binge drinking. But Iowa water is loaded with nitrates and other toxins, and Iowans are exposed to a wide range of harmful agrichemicals liberally used throughout the state. The cancer/industrial agriculture connection should not be shunted aside.
On November 13, Factory Farms, Your Health, and the Cancer Connection brings together a range of experts taking a hard look at how the toxins associated with industrial agriculture may be a significant contributor to Iowa’s alarming cancer rates and other public health issues.
Water quality expert Dr. Chris Jones, public health expert Audrey Tran Lam, registered dietician Mary Jo Forbord and Field to Family’s Michelle Kenyon examines how our current agricultural practices are harming human health and ways to access cleaner, healthier local foods.
The meeting, organized by the Iowa Alliance for Responsible Agriculture and co-sponsored by Little Village, begins 7:00 pm at the Iowa City Public Library, 123 S. Linn Street. The meeting is free. A Zoom option is available for those outside the Iowa City area.
Water quality expert and former manager of the Iowa Water Quality Information System, Dr. Chris Jones directly witnessed how Iowa’s waterways are affected by agricultural practices. He’ll cover the ways nitrates and other pollutants wind up in Iowa’s water and also address why, in a state where half of our waterways are laced with pollutants, the state refuses to meaningfully address Iowa’s water quality crisis.
Numerous studies link high nitrate consumption with various cancers. Audrey Tran Lam, Environmental Health Program Director at UNI’s Center for Energy and Environmental Education (CEEE), will discuss how nitrate-laden water threatens physical health and the level where nitrates in water becomes a major health concern.
Mary Jo Forbord is both a registered dietician and fifth generation Minnesota farmer whose organic farm is surrounded by fields loaded with agricultural chemicals. She’ll cover how agricultural chemicals impact the quality of our food and the ways exposure to these chemicals can cause physical harm.
There are food choices that don’t compromise human health or the environment. Michelle Kenyon, Executive Director of Field to Family, will talk about food hubs, what they are, what they offer, and how they can be accessed for fresh, healthy, environmentally-friendly local foods.
The meeting will wrap up with an opportunity for audience questions. Zoom participants can register here. https://bit.ly/4f6mU2u