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NIAA Animal Health Emergency Management --2004 Mid-Year Committee Report

 

Animal Health Emergency Management Committee
Mid-Year Report
August 27, 2004

Of great significance is the recent unveiling of Department of Homeland Security (DHS) actions that reveal the Department’s recognition of the importance of animal agriculture.  And also significant is the apparent coordination that is occurring between the U.S. Department of Agriculture and DHS.  The actions include:

  • Creation of a Food and Agriculture Sector Coordinating Council with seven Sub-Councils, including Producers/Animal Sub-Council

  • Creation of a Food and Agriculture Government Coordinating Council

  • Distribution for review of a draft National Infrastructure Protection Plan that includes extensive sector-specific plans for critical infrastructure protection of agriculture and food.

  • Distribution for review of a draft National Response Plan that for the first time includes an emergency support function for agriculture.  (Glenn Slack submitted comments on behalf of NIAA.)

These actions follow and implement two homeland security presidential directives.  Homeland Security Presidential Directive-7 identified agriculture as part of the critical infrastructure of the United States.  It tasked the Department of Homeland Security and the Sector-Specific Agencies (e.g., USDA) to work with sector owners and operators to develop Sector Coordinating Councils to identify, prioritize, and coordinate sector programs to protect critical infrastructure/key resources; and facilitate sharing of information about physical and cyber threats, vulnerabilities, incidents, potential protective measures, and best practices.  Additional information about the Councils is attached if you are interested.  Glenn Slack represented NIAA at an organizing Food and Agriculture Sector meeting on June 24, 2004.  I attended as a representative of the American Veterinary Medical Association.

The second directive, HSPD-9, Defense of United States Agriculture and Food, is viewed as a historic document that will have long-standing and positive influences on animal health and animal agriculture, if implemented in full.  The directive establishes national policy to defend the agriculture and food system against terrorist attacks, major disasters, and other emergencies.  The directive requires actions in the areas of awareness and warning, vulnerability assessments, mitigation strategies, response planning and recovery, outreach and professional development, and research and development.

Sector-Specific Coordinating Councils
These Councils, preferably through an owner/operator spokesperson, represent the government’s point of entry into the sectors for developing the entire range of infrastructure protection activities and issues.  The Sector Coordinating Council serves as an honest broker to facilitate inclusive organization and coordination of a sector’s policy development, infrastructure protection planning, and plan implementation activities.  Such activities include sector-wide planning, development of sector best practices, sector-wide promulgation of programs and plans, development of requirements for effective information sharing, research and development, and cross-sector coordination.

The food and agriculture sector initiated a Food and Agriculture Coordinating Council that is comprised of 2 representatives from each of 7 Sub-Councils.  The 7 Sub-Councils are:

  • Producers/Plant

  • Producers/Animal (Audrey Adamson, National Pork Producers Council, and Gary Weber, National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, are the representatives from the Sub-Council to the Council.  John Adams, National Milk Producers Federation, is the alternate.)

  • Processors/Manufacturers

  • Restaurants/Food Services

  • Retail

  • Warehousing and Logistics

  • Agriculture Production Inputs and Services

The Producers/Animal Sub-Council includes groups/organizations representing producers/owners/operators of animal agriculture operations where threats to the Nation’s animal agriculture would have an impact on the integrity of the Nation’s food producing animals.  The Sub-Council includes an Affiliated Industry Group which represents “input” organizations that provide “goods and services” such as private veterinary services, rendering and disposal services, veterinary biologics and animal health products, animal feed and feed ingredients, and research and education.  It is expected that the Sub-Council will meet monthly by conference call and possibly quarterly in-person.  The initial membership listing is as follows:

Producer/Owner-Operator Organizations

  • American Farm Bureau Federation

  • American Horse Council

  • American Meat Institute

  • American Rabbit Breeders Association

  • American Sheep Industry Association

  • American Veal Association

  • Catfish Farmers of America

  • Holstein Association USA, Inc.

  • National Aquaculture Association

  • National Cattlemen's Beef Association

  • National Chicken Council

  • National Farmers Union

  • National Fisheries Institute

  • National Milk Producers Federation

  • National Pork Board

  • National Pork Producers Council

  • National Turkey Federation

  • North American Elk Breeders Association

  • Murphy-Brown, LLC.

  • United Egg Association

  • United Egg Producers

  • U.S. Poultry & Egg Association

  • Livestock Marketing Association

Affiliated Industry Groups

  • American Association of Equine Practitioners

  • American Association of Swine Veterinarians

  • American Dairy Science Association

  • American Feed Industry Association

  • American Meat Institute

  • American Society of Animal Science

  • American Veterinary Medical Association

  • Animal Health Institute

  • Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges

  • Association of Veterinary Biologics Companies

  • Council for Agricultural Science and Technology

  • Federation of Animal Science Societies

  • Livestock Exporters Association of the USA

  • National Grain and Feed Association

  • National Institute for Agricultural Security

  • National Institute for Animal Agriculture

  • National Renderers Association

  • U.S. Animal Health Association

There is also a Food and Agriculture Government Coordinating Council which consists of high-level state and federal government officials available to interact with the Food and Agriculture Sector Coordinating Council, as requested.  The official membership consists of representatives of the:

  • Infrastructure Coordination Division, Infrastructure Analysis/Infrastructure Protection, Dept. of Homeland Security;

  • Homeland Security Office, USDA; (Jeremy Stump representative, Diane DiPetrio alternate)

  • Food Safety and Security Staff, Dept. of Health and Human Services/FDA;

  • Health Science Policy, Health Affairs, Dept. of Defense;

  • Office of Pesticides Programs, Environmental Protection Agency;

  • 2 from Association of State and Territorial Health Officials

  • 2 from National Association of State Departments of Agriculture

  • 1 from National Assembly of State Chief Livestock Health Officials (Max Lea rep, Michael Marshall alternate)

The Secretariat is provided by the Director, Infrastructure Programs Office, ICD/IAIP, DHS

The Government Coordinating Council can call on named Subject Matter Experts if needed.  They include Joseph J. Frick, Acting Director, Emergency Management/Homeland Security, USDA/APHIS and Dina J. Barbour, Emergency Management and Homeland Security, USDA/APHIS.

Besides coordinating among and between the government departments and agencies, the private and the government councils will meet together to share information and work on solutions.
 

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