Tip Sheets

Cornell experts on coronavirus - Impact on agriculture, food, beverage industries and food supply chain

Media Contact

Lindsey Knewstub

Andrew Novakovic

E. V. Baker Professor of Agricultural Economics Emeritus

Agricultural economist Andrew Novakovic can address aspects related to the food supply amid the COVID-19 pandemic, including agricultural production, food processing, and transportation systems. He also can talk in-depth about the pandemic is impacting the dairy industry.

Miguel Gómez

Associate Professor of Applied Economics and Management

Miguel Gómez, professor of applied economics and management at the Cornell SC Johnson College of Business, is able to address food markets and supply chains in regards to food availability during the COVID-19 pandemic. Gómez says food supply chains must become more flexible so that goods can be more easily directed to either supermarkets or food service establishments. Gómez is available for interviews in Spanish.

Martin Wiedmann

Professor of Food Safety

Food safety professor Martin Wiedmann can speak to risks associated with food production during the COVID-19 crisis including how meat-packing shutdowns illustrate the challenges of minimizing the risk of contagion among workers in the food industry.

Mary Jo Dudley

Director of the Cornell Farmworker Program

Mary Jo Dudley is the Director of the Cornell Farmworker Program and a faculty member of the Department of Development Sociology. She can address pressures that COVID-19 is putting on farmworkers and agriculture production. Here she discusses the emphasis coronavirus has put on the importance of farmworkers.

Bradley Rickard

Professor in Applied Economics and Management

Food and agricultural economist Bradley Rickard can discuss how COVID-19 is impacting fruit and vegetable markets and produce distribution. Rickard can also can speak to how coronavirus has impacted food waste in the supply chain.

Anusuya Rangarajan

Director of the Cornell Small Farm Program

Anusuya Rangarajan, director of the Cornell Small Farm Program can talk about aspects of farming during the current COVID-19 pandemic, including best management practices for U-Pick farms to open safely.

Alex Susskind

Associate Professor of Food and Beverage Management

Alex Susskindprofessor of food and beverage management at the Cornell School of Hotel Administration, can speak to how the coronavirus has impacted the food and beverage industry and strategic thinking needed to reopen businesses. 

Aaron Adalja

Assistant Professor of Food and Beverage Management

Aaron Adalja, assistant professor of food and beverage management can weigh in on how higher retail meat prices given the closure of large meat processing plants across the U.S. could result in a growth of plant-based meat alternatives. Adalja says these plant-based products are positioned as substitute goods for meat and could be relatively less expensive, and therefore more appealing to price sensitive consumers.

Richard Stup

Agricultural Workforce Specialist

Richard Stup is an agricultural workforce specialist who works to addresses challenges facing the agricultural industry. He can talk about the impact of COVID-19 for farmworkers and how to prevent the spread of coronavirus on farms. 

Douglass Miller

Lecturer in Food and Beverage Management

Douglass Miller, a lecturer in food and beverage management at the SC Johnson College of Business, School of Hotel Administration can speak on how the COVID-19 pandemic is impacting the beverage industry.

Cornell University has television, ISDN and dedicated Skype/Google+ Hangout studios available for media interviews.