ASTA Shares Story of Better Seed, Better Life at Walt Disney World!
- On March 9, 2017
ASTA representatives were at Walt Disney World last week sharing the “Magic of Seed” at the 24th Annual EPCOT International Flower & Garden Festival! The festival has grown in popularity in each of its 20-plus years to an audience that is now over 7 million visitors!
Plant breeders Jessie Alt, DuPont Pioneer, and Eric Hoeft, HM.Clause, delivered a series of four 45-minute presentations in the festival’s opening week. The presentations discussed the connection between better seed and better life, and the role of plant breeders as problem-solvers – addressing everything from farmer to home-gardener needs, like combating pests, weeds and disease; environmental challenges, like the wise use of natural resources; and consumer needs, like better taste, nutrition and appearance.
The audience, primarily made up of home-gardeners, was very engaged and asked questions about everything from how to get rid of pests in their home-grown tomatoes, to the use of pesticides, and safety of GMOs. Better Seed, Better Life story boards were prominently displayed in the festival center and every audience member went home with a specially-branded Tomatosphere seed packet.
The 2017 festival also features an ASTA garden visually depicting the evolution of popular vegetables and flowers over the years, thanks to plant breeding. The garden will be displayed outside the Land Pavilion through May. ASTA’s Communications Committee is planning promotions around the event, including a meeting in Orlando at the end of April to increase awareness. Initial photos from the event are available in the ASTA Flickr album, as well as facebook, and twitter. Click here for a video of the full presentation.
