A free meal of delicacies like capon, baby arugula sandwiches and yogurt parfait welcomed diners at Houston Hall yesterday.
Penn Head Executive Chef Tim Zintz offered a gourmet luncheon made exclusively from local products as area farmers celebrated the first day of spring.
The luncheon was hosted by FarmEcology, a student-based organization that works with the University to promote local foods and also runs a kiosk in Houston Market.
College senior Emma Kirwan, the group's co-founder, introduced a panel of speakers who discussed the merits of bringing local produce to the dinner table in Philadelphia.
Steve Shelly of Somerton Tanks Farm said his farm, which partners with the Philadelphia Water Department, provides healthy, environmentally safe produce.
"We grow stuff that tastes good, and we sell stuff that was picked the day before," he said. "In supermarkets, I always say, 'I wish they had a harvest date on it.'"
Also present was Ron Davis, procurement manager for Land O' Lakes, a producer-run co-operative with more than $7 billion in global annual sales of dairy products, deli meats, eggs, seed feed and agronomy products.
Despite Land O' Lakes' global reach, it has also managed to keep Philadelphia supplied with locally produced milk under an exclusive arrangement with Wawa Food Markets, Davis said.
Zintz, who is employed by Aramark Corp., a multinational food-services company that manages Penn's Dining Services, explained the University's role in selecting locally grown produce for its dining halls.
Controversy arose when Davis was asked about the use of a Food and Drug Administration-approved growth hormone at Land O' Lakes' farms that is used to boost milk production.
The hormone is "naturally occurring in cows. It's not a drug, it's a growth hormone. A lot of people call it a drug. It is not a drug," he said.
Davis added that no scientific studies indicate that it could harm consumers.
Carla Rodriguez, a Public Health official, offered a different assessment.
The hormone is "synthetically made in a laboratory," Rodriguez said. "It is also known that the use of this drug on milking cows can create elevated levels of insulin-like Growth Factor-1, which studies have associated with factors that cause cancer."
Zintz said that the presentation was supported by the White Dog Cafe Foundation, a non-profit organization associated with a local restaurant. "We get together with the farmers, and we talk a little bit about how we can bridge the gap between ... a company like mine and farm like theirs."
He pointed to the popularity of Philadelphia native Mary Rakowski's Starbar protein bars, sold in Houston Market, as one of his efforts' biggest successes.
