Jeff Raikes | Agriculture and Health Summit

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10/06/2021 Added

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Jeff Raikes sets the stage for discussion at the Agriculture and Health Summit. Raikes is co-founder of the Raikes Foundation and former CEO of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

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[00:00:00.011](upbeat music)
[00:00:03.180]Welcome to the inaugural Agriculture and Health Summit,
[00:00:07.380]cultivating gut health
[00:00:09.100]at the crossroads of food and medicine.
[00:00:12.430]This conference is anchored on the concept
[00:00:15.270]that we can prevent and treat human disease,
[00:00:18.500]improve nutrition, and achieve better overall health
[00:00:22.510]outcomes through the gut microbiome,
[00:00:25.310]by changing agriculture and food production practices.
[00:00:29.850]Bill and Melinda gates and the Gates Foundation,
[00:00:32.400]and my wife, Trisha and I, through our foundation
[00:00:35.610]invested in this concept several years ago
[00:00:38.350]to support the creation
[00:00:40.060]of the Nebraska Food for Health Center.
[00:00:42.600]You know, Bill said to me,
[00:00:43.750]that deeply understanding the microbiome
[00:00:47.140]is one of the two top areas of biomedical research
[00:00:51.640]for the next decade.
[00:00:52.670]And it is exciting to see this conference emerge
[00:00:55.920]as an example of the Center's progress.
[00:00:59.340]I have a personal passion for this area.
[00:01:02.210]I grew up on a farm in Nebraska,
[00:01:03.980]still owned and operated by my family today,
[00:01:06.830]just 30 minutes from Nebraska Innovation Campus.
[00:01:10.120]The critical lessons I have learned from the farm
[00:01:12.750]about work ethic, resilience,
[00:01:15.430]and the importance of innovation
[00:01:17.090]have guided every facet of my life from our farm,
[00:01:20.820]to Microsoft, and later as the CEO
[00:01:23.320]of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
[00:01:26.050]There have been tremendous advances
[00:01:27.840]in the field of agriculture over the past decade.
[00:01:31.350]Nebraska and the midwest have been at the heart
[00:01:34.220]of modern day agriculture.
[00:01:35.880]We've made huge strides
[00:01:38.320]in producing better seeds for higher yields,
[00:01:41.620]as well as drought resistance.
[00:01:44.040]Furthermore, university research is helping us grow crops
[00:01:47.830]with less water usage,
[00:01:49.610]better soil management and conservation,
[00:01:52.390]while also improving our farm management
[00:01:55.300]by focusing on agricultural economics and agribusiness.
[00:01:59.080]But, we must continue to innovate and think big
[00:02:03.450]as we aim to meet the needs of modern society.
[00:02:07.690]Feeding the world is a critical goal,
[00:02:10.550]but we must simultaneously build more regenerative
[00:02:14.210]and sustainable agriculture for our collective future.
[00:02:18.320]And, feeding the world must deliver a healthier population.
[00:02:24.330]We must, and can strategically enhance
[00:02:27.850]health promoting traits in agricultural and food products,
[00:02:31.380]which in turn can target more significant systemic problems
[00:02:35.900]in medicine and healthcare, lead to better nutrition,
[00:02:39.890]and deliver on our ultimate goal,
[00:02:42.840]more robust human health.
[00:02:46.550]To connect agriculture production to biomedicine
[00:02:50.020]requires the coordination of scientists and researchers
[00:02:53.600]across diverse disciplines.
[00:02:56.280]In 2016, I challenged the University of Nebraska
[00:03:00.450]Gut Function Initiative to think big,
[00:03:04.490]and that helped to create Ag 2.0.
[00:03:07.040]The vision developed by those faculty members became
[00:03:10.270]the mission of the Nebraska Food for Health Center.
[00:03:14.060]NFHC launched with the bold mission
[00:03:17.550]of linking agriculture and biomedical research
[00:03:21.560]through the microbiome.
[00:03:24.370]Our goal is to get agriculture, plant, and food scientists
[00:03:29.090]excited about improving health outcomes
[00:03:31.600]with plants and food.
[00:03:32.870]We want to get biomedical researchers
[00:03:35.870]interested in examining how food for health products
[00:03:39.330]can be vital approaches to disease prevention and treatment.
[00:03:44.520]I'm excited to see how this conference
[00:03:47.100]will catalyze ideas, collaboration, and action.
[00:03:51.520]The knowledge you will share at this conference
[00:03:53.530]across ag production, food production, microbiome research,
[00:03:58.260]biomedicine, nutrition, and disease research is critical.
[00:04:03.230]This type of multidisciplinary research,
[00:04:05.740]along with the commercial and regulatory sectors
[00:04:08.470]that are present today,
[00:04:10.020]will help create the science that can drive food for health
[00:04:14.600]through the microbiome.
[00:04:17.280]This conference is a chance to expand upon the opportunities
[00:04:21.020]and overcome the barriers to commercializing
[00:04:24.090]the discoveries into real-world products
[00:04:27.020]that benefit humans across the planet.
[00:04:30.490]I am particularly proud to see
[00:04:32.770]Nebraska Food for Health Centers sponsor this conference.
[00:04:36.450]They bring strong thought leadership
[00:04:39.010]and the kind of multidisciplinary approach
[00:04:41.660]we'll need to tackle global challenges.
[00:04:44.370]I am also very grateful for the partnerships
[00:04:47.430]NFHC has formed
[00:04:49.310]with the UC Davis Foods for Health Institute,
[00:04:53.250]the Whistler Carbohydrate Research Center at Purdue,
[00:04:57.340]the Alimentary Pharmabiotic Centre
[00:05:01.040]at Cork College in Ireland,
[00:05:03.520]and all of the major research entities around the world
[00:05:07.360]represented by the speakers at this conference.
[00:05:10.750]Together, the shared passions of these essential centers
[00:05:15.760]and entities are the currency
[00:05:18.370]that make the dream of Ag 2.0 a reality.
[00:05:22.370]Thank you.
[00:05:23.510]I wish you the best for robust dialogue at the conference,
[00:05:26.730]and future collaboration.
[00:05:29.270]Human health needs your efforts.
[00:05:31.999](bright music)

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Jeff Raikes | Agriculture and Health Summit

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