House Agriculture Subcommittee on Livestock, Dairy, and Produce Subcommittee Ranking Member Jim Costa delivered the following statement at today’s hearing entitled “A Review of USDA Animal Disease Prevention and Response Efforts.”
[As prepared for delivery]
Good morning, thank you Chairman Mann for holding this hearing, and I look forward to working together this Congress to advance bipartisan policy in the livestock space. I’d also like to thank our witness, Undersecretary Moffitt, who is from the Great State of California, for being here and I look forward to her testimony and having a productive and informative hearing.
While a lot of livestock policy is typically addressed outside of the farm bill, there are crucial programs, such as the ones being discussed today, that ensure our food system is secure. I’ve said it many times, but the message can never be overstated: food security is national security. And no issue embodies that message to a greater extent than animal health programs and the inherent biosecurity measures that accompany animal health initiatives. Protecting livestock operations in our country and having the tools in place to address outbreaks is critical to keeping our supply chain intact and guaranteeing continuity in our food supply.
For over a year we’ve seen firsthand how Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza has devastated domestic poultry populations. Americans have felt this at home with the widely reported increase in egg prices. This outbreak should be a reminder of how important it is that we continue to refine and improve our approach to addressing animal disease. USDA needs tools to guarantee a robust response, and I would like to thank them for their work to keep this outbreak as contained as possible. USDA’s coordination with state authorities and industry has been effective given the difficult circumstances, and if it weren’t for their efforts this outbreak could be even worse.
There are certain aspects of animal disease that are difficult to contain, for example a primary driver of our current outbreak has been migrating wild bird species. Interaction between animal agriculture, wild animals, and the environment is inevitable but just because something may be inevitable does not mean that we cannot prepare. The 2018 Farm Bill addressed animal health through creating new programs and improving existing ones.
Three popular and effective programs in the Farm Bill—the Vaccine Bank, the National Animal Preparedness and Response Program, and the National Animal Health Laboratory Network—make up the foundation for preventing and preparing for outbreaks. However, it is important to remember that programs are only as effective as the people who enact them, and an effective response is dependent upon highly trained veterinarians and support staff who can work with stakeholders to quickly contain outbreaks. We need to ensure that there is a strong pipeline of veterinary professionals, and that Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has the resources to maintain and train the staff they need to address outbreaks. These farm bill programs are an essential part of maintaining a secure food supply for our country. As we have seen over the past year, the cost of an outbreak will far exceed the cost of supporting disease prevention programs. And while credit is not always given for prevention, I believe this is an essential role of government and is a good example of proactive over reactive policy making. So, thank you Undersecretary Moffitt for leading these efforts and I look forward to hearing more about the work you do and what we can do to improve these programs as we write the next farm bill.
Thank you and I yield back.
