What is a Sustainable Tasmanian Diet?

Tasmania has become synonymous with quality produce and artisanal food producers with the diversity of our food production culture and fertile soils celebrated. Yet at the same time a surprisingly large number of Tasmanian’s cannot afford a healthy diet and social media is full of prominent voices claiming that conflicting diets are the most sustainable.

“Should we be eating a strictly vegetable diet or only items that would have been available to Paleolithic humas? Is it better to buy organic chickpeas from overseas or frozen peas grown in Northern Tasmania?” These are some of the tricky questions that plague many of us trying to eat sustainably in Tasmania, says Festival Director Lissa Villeneuve.

So, with our reputation as a quality, clean, green food producer and a high percentage of Tasmanians concerned about making good food choices, the Sustainable Living Festival
is bringing together some of the best thinkers and doers around the State to discuss what a sustainable Tasmanian diet might look,” said Festival Director Lissa Villeneuve.

“We’ve brought large and small scale producers, academics, and retailers together to explore the in’s and out’s of the topic and get beyond the bumper sticker slogans” continued Ms Villeneuve.

You can ask questions of the esteemed panel in advance by going to www.slt.org.au/sustainable_diet by 24th October. Some of these questions will be answered on the day as well as questions taken from the live audience.

The Sustainable Tasmanian Diet presentation is on 31st October at 2.30pm as part of the 2015 Sustainable Living Festival at PW1.

Panelists

James Kirkpatrick, University of Tasmania
Jarod Santana, Mapali Farm
Louise Sales, Hobart City Farm
Alban Johnson, Eumarrah
Rohan Johnson, University of Tasmania
Will Bignell, Thorpe Farm
Lissa Villeneuve, Sustainable Living Tasmania