Pritzker Fellow Peter Meijer on "Eating & the American Dream"

(Current UChicago Students Only)

Thursday, February 16

12:30-1:45 PM

In wilderness survival, the Rule of Three states that one can survive for 3 minutes without air, 3 days without water, and 3 weeks without food. While the government certainly regulates air (Clean Air Act of 1963) and water (Clean Water Act of 1972), there are few areas where regulations are both more needed and more prevalent than what we consume. Improvements in food safety have been a shining success, and the US leads the globe as the lowest percentage of consumer expenditures of food consumed at home.

Yet recent crises have shown the perils of industries and regulators that grow complacent- from spiking grain and fertilizer prices in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, to the 2022 baby formula shortage, to rapid price fluctuation owing to concentration risk in the meat and poultry industries. This session will explore why the federal government often cannot get out of its own way when unexpected events arise.

Pritzker Fellows seminars are off the record and open to current UChicago students only. Seating in the IOP Living Room is limited and available on a first-come, first-served basis. 

If you have any questions about accessibility, please contact Ashley Jorn (ashleyjorn@uchicago.edu).