Agro terrorism is imminent threat

by Nicolas Parasie

WASHINGTON - Food and agriculture experts warned members of the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee Wednesday that America's food supply is insufficiently protected against possible "agroterrorist" attacks, which could severely damage the economy and inflict widespread medical harm.

"We've become a nation that is afraid of anthrax, that is afraid of opening letters. Imagine being concerned about opening our refrigerator," said Thomas McGinn, director of emergency programs for the North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.Because of its size and scope, the U.S. agriculture industry is an attractive target for terrorists, according to a new RAND Corp. report presented to the committee.

"Our response [to the threat of attacks] has been woefully inadequate," said Sen. Daniel Akaka, D.-Hawaii. "It would be a crushing burden if our food and water would be contaminated."

Terrorist organizations, such as Osama bin Laden's Al Qaeda, are believed to possess significant information on how to carry out such a terrorist attack, said Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, who chairs the committee. "

A CIA report in May confirmed that the Sept. 11 hijackers expressed interest in crop-dusting aircraft, an effective and remarkably simple way to spread biological agents, including plant and animal diseases, over large areas," Collins said.

An attack on agriculture could lead to the outbreak of disease, which could have a far-reaching impact on the economy and tourism, consequences that could last for years after the contamination has been contained, a number of experts told the committee.

As an example, Collins pointed to the reduction in tourism prompted by the outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in Great Britain in 2001. "A vital sector remains largely unguarded, and an attack could be devastatingáand could cripple our economy, require geographic quarantines, cause massive upheaval and produce illness and death," Collins said. Sen.

Jim Talent, R.-Mo., said the "food chain is an all-too-easy target" and "a big bull's eye for terrorists." Food security affects all states equally, he said, explaining that "our food comes from ranches in the West, farms in the heartland or potato farms in Maine."

McGinn said the threat of agroterrorism is a homeland security issue that requires "coordinated action on the part of federal, state and local governments, the private sector and concerned citizens across the country."

Sen. Richard Durbin, D.-Ill., said there is a lack of coordination among governmental agencies and local, state and federal governments need to get their "act together."

Using foot-and-mouth disease as an example, McGinn used a computer simulation to demonstrate to the committee how fast a disease could spread across the country, leading to the loss of more than 23 million animals only eight days after an outbreak.

He said food contamination would produce a similarly devastating effect, instantly overloading the public health system because of widespread fear. Besides the considerable economic impact, terrorism would create a huge psychological impact on a nation in which agriculture is the largest industry, according to the RAND report.

The RAND report recommended a number of steps to protect the food industry from agroterrorism, including education to help people to recognize symptoms and detect problems earlier, programs to contain and eradicate outbreaks and programs to assess risks better.

Ned Porter, deputy commissioner of the Maine Department of Agriculture, Food and Rural Resources, said that he doubted Maine would be a target for agroterrorism but added that an attack could easily disrupt the production of potatoes and dairy products, Maine's prime agricultural goods.