Soya, the last 100 years
'Soya de siste 100 år': a workshop, held in Norwegian, on soybeans and the development of their role as a ubiquitous product in modern consumer society.
Main content
Over the past 100 years, soybeans have become a ubiquitous product in modern consumer society. They are an ingredient in animal feed, as well as many foodstuffs and consumer goods. Today's worldwide soy production is around 385 million tonnes per year. This is half of the amount produced of foodstuffs such as wheat and rice, which are staple foods for humans (of which 780 and 755 million tonnes are produced respectively annually in the world). In fact, soy plays a major role in our daily lives, even if it is consumed indirectly. In Norway, soy is used, among other things, as a protein source in salmon feed.
So what exactly is soy? Why is so much soy used around the world? How has soy trade become so big? How was the soybean plant changed for cultivation? We want to convey the industrial, nutritional and agricultural value of soya. We will also put the political and economic ties linked to the plant in a historical perspective.
Participants:
Ines Prodöhl, Professor, history, Department of Archaeology, History, Cultural and Religious Studies and author of the book "Globalizing the Soybean: Fat, Feed, and Sometimes Food, c. 1900–1950", published with Routledge 2023.
Berit Gehrke, Dr., section leader University gardens, University Museum in Bergen, botanist. The botanical gardens have grown soya outside in Bergen for the past 2 years.
Erik-Jan Lock, Professor, Head of Research for the Nutrition and feed technology area at Nofima, a leading Norwegian food research institute that conducts research and development in aquaculture, fisheries and food.
The program consists of presentations of 20 minutes (held in Norwegian), plus time for questions in the form of a discussion panel after the presentations.
Light refreshments will be served. Please register here.
