UPI Farming Today

Farmers vulnerable to terrorist attack

The National Research Council says in the United States is vulnerable to a biological terrorist attack because the federal government's plans for dealing with such an instance are inadequate.

The study of the U.S. food and fiber system was requested by the Agriculture Department in 1999. But the attacks of 2001 on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon changed the study's focus.

The study found biological threats to crops and livestock do not need to be sophisticated to cause significant damage, including to the crops themselves, to the public health and to cause loss of confidence in the food supply.

"Technical sophistication would not be necessary for attacks with some of these threat agents," the study reads.

The report noted the United States has "no publicly available national plan for defense against intentional introduction of biological agents directed at agriculture."

It also noted that adverse effects of poisons or other toxins on wildlife have not been taken into account.

"There are important gaps in our knowledge of foreign-plant and foreign-animal pests and pathogens," the study reads. "These gaps reduce the reliability and timeliness of risk assessments and risk-management decisions."

In recent months, federal officials have said one of the goals of creating a new Homeland Security Department is to step up procedures meant to protect the U.S. food supply. Officials talk of tighter controls on the U.S. borders to keep unknown agents out of the country. The study contends that is a step in the right direction since current border checks are considered insufficient.

"The current inspection and exclusion program at the U.S. borders, in which only small proportions of people and goods entering the United States are inspected, is inadequate for countering the threat of agriculture bio-terrorism," the report said.

Pork purchase:

A physicians group is upset the Agriculture Department plans to purchase surplus pork products so they can be used in school lunch programs and other programs to feed the needy.

The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine sent a letter last week to the Agriculture Department, calling its recent decision to purchase $30 million in pork products irresponsible.

They object to children being fed a "high fat, cholesterol-laden" food item such as pork. Federal officials say they were trying to help hog farmers sell off excess product.

"If farmers are having trouble finding markets for pork, the government should assist them in transferring to healthier products, rather than continue to push meat on school children," wrote committee President Neal Barnard.

Drought:

The Agriculture Department will provide more than $752 million in aid to livestock ranchers whose animals suffered due to hot, dry weather conditions during the past two years.

Officials said money will be given to ranchers of cattle, sheep and buffalo who live in specially designated "drought counties" during 2001 and 2002. Those areas include all of Arizona, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Carolina and Utah, along with parts of 30 other states.

Money will come through the Livestock Compensation Program, and signup will begin Oct. 1.

"This program will particularly help livestock producers who have very few risk management tools available to help during these difficult times," Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman said.

British beef:

Officials in the United Kingdom want France to lift its ban against British beef.

Environment Secretary Margaret Beckett said she did not see any health-related reason for the ban, calling British beef products, "the safest in the world."

The British Broadcasting Corp. reported the Paris-based AFFSA said France would not face any health risk by allowing British beef products to be sold. French government officials are expected to make a decision on the issue by the end of September.

Fair-livestock shows:

Iowa State Fair officials are banning four teenagers and their family members from taking part of livestock shows for the next two years.

Fair officials said all four teenagers had sheep with traces of a swine growth hormone in their bloodstreams. Those sheep previously had been disqualified from the fair's Sale of Champions.

Fair officials also provided the names of the four teenagers to the International Association of Fairs and Expositions, which in theory could make it difficult for any of them to take part in livestock shows in other states.

Grains:

Grain futures were mixed at the close Friday on the Chicago Board of Trade.

Soybeans were mixed on a lack of new information that would have shifted prices in a single direction.

Corn fell on better-than-expected yields due to good harvest weather.

Wheat rose on forecasts for dry weather next week that will increase the amount of hard red winter wheat that is planted, although cool temperatures will slow the drying rates of crops that sustained significant amounts of rainfall.

Oats fell because of limited demand for the crop, combined with competition from European-grown oats.

The prices:

Soybeans: Nov 5.64 ½ up 1/2, Jan 5.67 ½ unch, Mar 5.68 ¼ off 1/4, May 5.66 ¼ off 1 1/2.

Corn: Dec 2.60 off 3/4, Mar 2.68 off 5 3/4, May 2.71 ½ off 6, Jul 2.71 ¼ off 6 1/4.

Wheat: Dec 4.00 up 4 1/2, Mar 3.98 up 1/2, May 3.79 up 2 1/2, Jul 3.51 ¾ up 1 1/4.

Oats: Dec 2.01 off 2 1/4, Mar 1.99 unch, May 1.97 up 1, Jul 1.90 up 1.