PHILADELPHIA --  The University of Pennsylvania Libraries is co-hosting a series of events addressing a wide range of food-policy issues in the United States and around the world.

The Bodek Lecture Series, “American Pie: The Politics of Food in the 21st Century,” tackles issues such as global food security, sustainable agriculture and food waste in America.

On April 11, in a lecture entitled “The Food Not Eaten,” journalist Jonathan Bloom, will discuss the amount of food that Americans waste every year, as well as the ethical, environmental and economic impact of such waste. 

Bloom, the author of American Wasteland: How America Throws Away Nearly Half of Its Food (and What We Can Do About It), will also talk about how to minimize food waste.  The talk begins at 6 p.m. in the G17 Auditorium in Claudia Cohen Hall at 36th Street and Locust Walk. 

The April 19 talk, “Global Food Security: A 21st Century Challenge,” features Alan Kelly, University of Pennsylvania Veterinary Medicine’s dean emeritus and professor.  He will address the challenges faced by agriculture to meet society’s growing needs while conserving the environment and also talk about controlling the spread of infectious diseases on farms and addressing the effects of climate change.  The 6 p.m. talk will be held in Room 130 in Penn Vet’s Hill Pavilion at  380 S. University Ave.

On April 24, the topic is “The Future of Food: Sustainable Agriculture Is Not Optional.”  John E. Ikerd, author of Sustainable Capitalism: A Matter of Common Sense and Small Farms Are Real Farms: Sustaining People Through Agriculture, will speak about sustainable agriculture.  The talk begins at 6 p.m. in the G17 Auditorium in Claudia Cohen Hall.

The series is co-sponsored by the School of Veterinary Medicine, School of Nursing/School of Arts and Sciences Nutrition Minor, Department of History and Sociology of Science, Agatston Urban Nutrition Initiative/Netter Center for Community Partnerships, Environmental Education Kitchen at Penn Women's Center, Penn Vegan Society and Penn Appétit.

The lectures are free and open to the public.

Additional information is available at http://www.library.upenn.edu/exhibits/americanpie.html Attendees can also RSVP at that website.