Texas A&M Agriculturalists Set Framework To Safeguard Food Supply

Science Daily ^ | 10-7-2002 | Texas A&M

[blam]

Date: Posted 10/7/2002

Texas A&M Agriculturists Set Framework To Safeguard Food Supply

COLLEGE STATION - Agricultural experts with Texas Cooperative Extension have created a process to help local jurisdictions across the nation assess the vulnerability of the food supply for terrorist attacks. The assessment guideline has gone forward to the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Department of Justice, which are expected to recommend its implementation nationwide, according to John Guido, National Emergency Response and Rescue Training Center program director.

The training center, an agency of the Texas Engineering Extension Service, would assume responsibility for training localities across the nation on how to use the process.

"This assessment tool will be the national model used by officials in local communities to help determine possible targets for terrorist attacks on agriculture," Guido said. "It aims at protecting the food supply and the inputs used for agriculture production."

Guido said the national assessment process was ongoing prior to the Sept. 11 attacks but rural vulnerability - thus the U.S. food supply - was only partially considered until recently.

Extension experts were assembled after a meeting with Texas A&M University's Institute for Countermeasures against Agricultural Bioterrorism revealed the high level of potential vulnerabilities in rural areas. The team included Extension specialists from crops, animal science, veterinary medicine, plant pathology, wildlife and fisheries, and communications.

"The gist of what we have been saying is that in a fully developed plan for agriculture, we have to link the planning as well as the response for livestock and crops to the broader emergency response for communities and families," said Dr. Neville Clarke, institute director. "And linking these two - agriculture and emergency response - has given us the ability to provide the training necessary to assure that these vulnerable spots are protected to the extent possible."

The vastness of the U.S. agriculture industry poses a challenge for protection against attacks, Guido noted.

But using the process to determine a jurisdiction's most vulnerable site, Guido said, will lead to planning scenarios so that local officials can evaluate their capability to respond and identify needs for additional planning, training and equipment.

"The group focused on identifying those critical nodes in the production process that might be most susceptible, rather than the effects that a particular event would cause," Guido said. "The intent is that local authorities could use the process to assess what is in their jurisdictions so that they would be more aware of what to watch for and therefore more likely to prevent an act of terrorism from taking place."

Guido said the model identifies production processes for the various agricultural industries and uses existing quality assurance and risk analyses to identify critical nodes in the process. Those nodes then are assessed by measuring relative vulnerability to attack. The agricultural vulnerability assessment is comparable to U.S. Department of Justice urban vulnerability assessment process currently in use throughout country, Guido said.

He said the process is expected to be implemented beginning in 2003.

Editor's Note: The original news release can be found at http://agnews.tamu.edu/dailynews/stories/AGPR/Oct0302a.htm

[blam]

One night a car load of A&M students were travelling to Houston to have a W/E party. When they were almost there, the saw a freeway sign that said "Houston left", so...they went back to College Station. (BTW, Texas A&M is a real good school.)

[VOA]

BTW, Texas A&M is a real good school.

Yes, but the campus is on suicide watch after the football lose to Texas Tech.

[Texaggie79]

People making snide comments like that are on "foot in the @$$" watch :-P

[Texaggie79]

ping

[Endeavor]

FIRE SLOCUM NOW!!!

[VOA]

People making snide comments like that are on "foot in the @$$" watch :-P

Hold on there pardner...I wasn't bashing the proud home of The 12th Man!

I was just noting the psychic impact of a loss to Texas Tech. Didn't mean any disrepect...
and apologize if it sounded like that.

(Heck, I'd also say that U. Nebraska is on suicide watch now, only more so...
but I respect the program and they will be back sooner or later.)

[secret garden]

You've got to be kidding. He just had his eyes opened last week and moved Babers out to quarterbacks and we finally had an offense. It was the Wrecking Crew that failed us this time. Gig 'em Aggies!

[Aggie Mama]

I think I'm starting to agree with you Endeavor. RC was hired on my freshman year. I think he runs a clean program, but there has to be coaches out there that can run a clean program and win!

[Salgak]

Of course, the REAL Aggie joke is this:

Q: What do you call an Aggie, 15 years after graduation ?

A: The Boss . . .

[Salgak]

Of course, the REAL Aggie joke is this:

Q: What do you call an Aggie, 15 years after graduation ?

A: The Boss . . .

[luckystarmom]

Well, RC has done a much better job of coaching than when I was at A&M. I was there from '80-'85. It was depressing! The highlights were beating Texas a few times.

In '85, was the only year we did good, and we went to the Cotton Bowl.

A&M also didn't do very well while my brothers were attending school there in the '70s.

[1L]

Well, RC has done a much better job of coaching than when I was at A&M.

That's a little like saying that Apple II+ you had in 1981 did better than the slide rule, so we shouldn't get rid of it and get a Pentium 4 (or PowerMac to appease the Mactrolls). I'm sick and tired of this illogic. This attitude has kept mediocrity at A&M (where only in sports, it seems, is even a hint of mediocrity accepted) for severals years and, if there are no changes, will keep it there for years to come.

The 1980's are light years away from today in college football. Ask KState and Northwestern (and Baylor for that matter) about that.

[Aggie Mama]

has=have. Sloppy subject-verb agreement there.

[Endeavor]

Sweetie,

I'm not kidding. RC Slocum should have been fired 5 yrs ago. There is NO reason to have kept him on this long. Texas A&M is a fine university for numerous reasons, and because football is the life blood for us, it should also excel, not just be average, in football.

We need a young coach (like Notre Dame just hired from Stanford) who has a vision AND a plan for a balanced offense and defense that will win. Texas continues to pull this off - they don't sit on their hands and wonder when to fire a coach - if the coach doesn't produce (Mackovick sp?), they fire him and get someone who CAN do the job.

A&M has been muscle-bound by sticking to the "just gettin' by" approach to football. I know, I was there for an eternity and through three degrees. I was there when Emory Bellard only knew how to run "Woo Woo Woodard" up the middle on third and long.

Quite frankly, it is too bad Jackie Sherrill apparently didn't play honestly, because he was a good coach - but playing honestly is the most important. After that comes winning. I'm telling you if Texas can do it and Michigan can do it, day in and day out, then Texas A&M can do it if they put their minds to it.

It's going to take a new AD. Get a new AD and a new coach, pay the money to get someone good and the revenues from the program will easily pay for the program.

Rant OFF.

Thank you for letting me get this off my maroon and white, VERY LOYAL (but momma didn't raise no fool) chest. -- E

[blam]

"A: The Boss . . ."

Yup. My boss and his boss at TI were Aggies.

[secret garden]

The AD IS retiring and I respectfully disagree with you about RC. I too remember Emory and up the middle with the Brazos Bull. Look at where RC's coaches have gone after leaving A&M. Head and assistant head coaches in name colleges and the NFL, where they're more than a little picky about getting winners. He does an excellent job of selecting coaches, with the huge exception of Dino Babers(and his one page playbook). ND's winning with Bob Davie's recruits. Now that we've suffered through the annual whupping by Tech, we should have a decent end to the season. And let's hope we recruit a kicker or two for next year!

[Endeavor]

I can live with respectful disagreement. I can't live with another year of Slocum. Please, God.