Meat + Poultry - September 2006 - 66

FSI MEDIA WATCH

YOUR LINK THROUGH THE FOOD CHAIN

Greg Henderson

Another inconvenient truth

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Agroterrorism is a hush, hush topic. It's not often discussed - seemingly for fear that it might give ideas to
those wishing to do us harm.
Agroterrorism is another of the
United States' inconvenient truths.
Wired magazine quoted Al Gore's definition of an inconvenient truth as one
"we hold at arm's length because if we
acknowledge it and recognize it, then
the moral imperative to make big
changes is inescapable."
Much like global
warming, the importance of agroterrorism preparedness is
hazy. Most acknowledge its
likelihood for devastation, but they
differ on the actual
likelihood of it ever
happening. Those
calling for preparedness
are easily dismissed as early
adopters and those dismissing it
as a possibility appear naïve.
After 9/11, numerous articles appeared discussing terrorist actions. Every
industry took a long, hard look at itself
to uncover vulnerabilities. The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette centered its focus
on agriculture in 2003 with an article
headlined, "Agroterrorism poses devastating threat." Readers learned that attacking the nation's food supply was
easy to do, difficult to defend and
would have high impact.
In July 2006, Kansas State University
released a Q&A on agroterrorism, attempting to offer some "straight talk"
on the financial implications of agroterrorism. Four professors offered their
opinions on the seriousness of the issue.
Five years after 9/11, experts are still
working to get the populous and the
media to see agroterrorism as a threat.
Jerry Jax, associate vice provost for
research compliance and the university
veterinarian said: "One of the things

16 FSI

FOOD SYSTEMS

ınsıder

SEPTEMBER 2006

that makes agricultural bioterrorism especially interesting is that there are a variety of organisms that could pose a significant threat. The fact that there are
several that would be easy to obtain,
easy to deploy or use, and would have
potentially dramatic effects all converge
to make this a concern for us."
The response to the release was
quick and decisive. Crickets. There were
a couple of calls to the professors, but the significant issue was treated rather
insignificantly.
The same
isn't necessarily
true of the authorities involved
in protecting the
nation's food supply. The International Symposium
on Agroterrorism is
spearheaded by the FBI.
And agriculture and food
was the fifth-most-identified sector by states supplying information for
the Department of Homeland Security's
National Asset Database.
Rather than further the issue, most
of the media latched onto the inane
failures of the DHS report. "Terror title
doesn't fit Indiana" from the Fort
Wayne Journal Gazette and "Possible
terror targets abound in Wisconsin"
from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
turned the issue into something more
palatable - a joke. The New York Daily
News article "N.Y.ers a-maized by corn
protection" also mocked the issue, ridiculing a DHS official for equating safeguards for a Midwestern cornfield to a
cop protecting New Yorkers.
Laughter is certainly easier and
cheaper than making the inescapable
big changes necessary to protect our
food.
By Kristal Arnold
Food Systems Insider

Editorial director
ghenderson@food360.com

800-255-5113
■

Board of Advisers
Charles Ahlem
Founder, Hilmar Cheese Co.

Dennis DiPietre
Pork-industry consultant

Thomas Helscher
Director of global
industry affairs, Monsanto

Daryl Olsen, DVM
Audubon-Manning Veterinary
Clinic Management Services

Mike Robach
VP food safety, Cargill

John Story
Grocery-industry consultant

Warren Weibert
Owner,
Decatur County Feed Yard

Brad White, DVM
Kansas State University
College of Veterinary Medicine

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Meat + Poultry - September 2006

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