301: Production

The below content replicates the content of the physical exhibit at CSU Spur. It can be used for reference, language translation, and additional accessibility.

Production: Making Our Food

Where does the food we eat come from? Food goes through a chain of activity called the Sustainable Food System to get to your plate. First, food is grown (production), made ready to eat (processing), brought to the store (distribution), and then it’s ready for you to buy and eat (consumption). Explore these exhibits to learn about the incredible journey of food! 

Panel B

Much of what we eat comes from farms and ranches—some are close by, like farms growing wheat in Colorado, and other farms are in states farther away and even across the world. 

Producing the Food for Your Table 

People who work in agriculture work all year long, all around the world, to grow and produce the food we eat. After this corn is collected, it will be processed into food—like tortillas, canned corn, and cereal—for your table. 

Diverse and Sustainable Food Supply 

Cattle, sheep, vegetables, fruits, pigs, wheat, and corn are all examples of food items agriculturalists raise, grow, and provide for us to eat. People who work in agriculture work with animals and the land and use problem solving and technology to make sure the world has a healthy and sustainable food supply. 

Check out the rooftop gardens, the rooftop greenhouse, and the Soil, Water & Plant Diagnostic Lab on the 3rd floor to learn more about how plants grow.  

The People Who Produce Our Food 

It takes many people and steps to get food from the farms and ranches where it is grown to our homes and tables.  

All year long, and across the world, agriculturalists are planting, growing, and collecting the food we eat. 

TONY FRANK

Chancellor, CSU System

Dr. Tony Frank is the Chancellor of the CSU System. He previously served for 11 years as the 14th president of CSU in Fort Collins. Dr. Frank earned his undergraduate degree in biology from Wartburg College, followed by a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from the University of Illinois, and a Ph.D. and residencies in pathology and toxicology at Purdue. Prior to his appointment as CSU’s president in 2008, he served as the University’s provost and executive vice president, vice president for research, chairman of the Pathology Department, and Associate Dean for Research in the College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences. He was appointed to a dual role as Chancellor in 2015 and became full-time System chancellor in July 2019.

Dr. Frank serves on a number of state and national boards, has authored and co-authored numerous scientific publications, and has been honored with state and national awards for his leadership in higher education.

Dr. Frank and his wife, Dr. Patti Helper, have three daughters.

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CSU Spur is turning 2! Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025.

It’s our anniversary!

It’s our anniversary! CSU Spur has been fully open to the public, sharing hands-on, family-friendly activities around food, water, and health for two years. Join us on Saturday, Jan. 11, for 2nd Saturday activities, including desserts, a mariachi performance, face painters, horses on treadmills, veterinarians in surgery, scientists in labs, and more. The celebration is from 11 a.m.-2 p.m. and CSU Spur will be open 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; no registration required, all public activities are free.

2nd Saturday at CSU Spur is presented by Canvas Credit Union.

JOCELYN HITTLE

Associate Vice President for CSU Spur, Colorado State University

Jocelyn Hittle is primarily focused on the CSU Spur campus at the National Western Center, and on supporting sustainability goals across CSU’s campuses. She sits on the Denver Mayor’s Sustainability Advisory Council, on the Advisory Committee for the Coors Western Art Show, and is a technical advisor for the AASHE STARS program.

Prior to joining CSU, Jocelyn was the Associate Director of PlaceMatters, a national urban planning think tank, and worked for the Orton Family Foundation. She has a degree in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology from Princeton, and a Masters in Environmental Management from the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies.

Jocelyn grew up in Colorado and spends her free time in the mountains or exploring Denver.

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We’ll see you Saturday!

2nd Saturday at CSU Spur is 10 a.m.-2 p.m. this Saturday (June 14), and we’re hosting a plant and pollinator celebration with all kinds of family-friendly activities, including a plant sale with CSU Extension, cooking with herbs in the Ardent Mills Teaching and Culinary Center, pollinator activities on the green roof, and the inaugural People’s Market at the Center.