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Senate Ag Committee tackles security of US agriculture 

Safeguarding the US agriculture industry and food supply system is a big concern as the Senate considers the 2018 Farm Bill.

Ranking member of the Senate Ag Committee Debbie Stabenow says food security IS national security and funding and research needs to be strengthened to protect the industry.

“Threats to our agriculture industry would not only decimate our economy but also change, frankly, our way of life,” she says.

The Senate Ag Committee held a hearing on agriculture security today for the first time in a decade.

During his testimony, former Senator Joe Lieberman, who co-chairs the Blue Ribbon Study on Biodefense, says avian influenza is an example of the need for agriculture security.

“It killed a lot of birds, but also cost the economy, by the best estimates I’ve seen, well over $3 billion,” he says.

He says leadership, funding, and innovation is needed to protect the industry from intentional or accidental threats.

“The nation needs new ideas, scientific solutions to drive agrodefense approaches behind their current borders,” he says.

Other panelists were General Richard Myers, president of Kansas State University; Dr. Raymond Hammerschmidt, professor of plant, soil, and microbial sciences at Michigan State University; and Dr. R.D. Meckes, North Carolina State Veterinarian.