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September 11th will
be a day that remains in our minds forever because of the horrific images
and heart-breaking sadness. But also for the fact that when one world
ended on that Tuesday morning another one was born; one that has brought
about significant changes for years to come.
One area that will
have an impact for years to come is the change in the agricultural industry.
Dr. Norman Hopper, associate dean of student and alumni affairs for the
College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources at Texas Tech University,
says that the terrorist acts reinforced the fact that we are vulnerable.
It
is a real unfortunate thing that has now affected life, Hopper said.
He believes that
it has caused those in the agricultural industry to start thinking about
protecting the integrity of our food and water supplies.
Because we
produce the most basic of basic product, it has changed all of our futures,
Hopper said.
Dr. Louis Chiodo,
assistant director for science for the Institute of Environmental and
Human Health at the Texas Tech Health Sciences Center, agrees that the
industry has gone through a tremendous change.
You would have
to be under a rock to not know that our world has changed, Chiodo
said.
Zooterrorism and
bioterrorism are terms that have been around for a while, but are now
being used more frequently since September 11th. This is the targeted
attack on animal and plant commodities.
Chiodo stated that
the average feedlot cow is on the lot for 240 days posing more of a threat
because keeping the cattle in a contained place for such a long period
of time allows for attacks to be more accessible.
Chiodo said that
he believes this type of terrorism is a real threat and has been prior
to the September 11th attacks. He says terrorists use zooterrorism because
it is easy for animals to serve as a production vessel for the attacks.
It is wrong
to think that the terrorist mind is a stupid mind, Chiodo said.
It is not our mind, but instead a very scientific one.
Dr. Kevin Pond, in
the department of animal science at Tech, says that there is a chance
that bio or zooterrorism could pose a threat for the High Plains because
of the swine, dairy and huge beef cattle industry in the area.
There is a
tremendous opportunity for threat in this area, Pond said.
Pond says that if
the swine and cattle that are raised and processed in the area are attacked,
the effects could spread all over the country. For example, contaminated
ground beef or milk could be shipped to all parts of the nation.
Food safety has always
been a concern around the world, however we are now more focused on the
issue. Hopper says that we now we need to be very conscience of someone
intentionally wanting to cause harm.
Terrorists will probably stop at nothing, Hopper said.
Chiodo said that
one of the problems now is distinguishing between what might be terrorism
or just a previously existing disease in livestock. He believes that it
is hard to know whether diseases or threats are natural or man-made terrorism.
In this day and age we always have to be thinking about biological
warfare and terrorist attacks, Chiodo said.
Hopper
says that the future changes of agriculture are hard to predict, but that
awareness is going to be the key for future safety. He says that even
though new technologies will be developed, awareness is what is really
going to help protect our resources.
For our safety,
were trying to think like they (terrorists) would think, Hopper
said.
Pond thinks that
future changes for safety will include reduced or limited traffic in and
out of feedlots. He also says that there will be major changes in grocery
stores, which can be the most locally vulnerable place. According to Pond,
prepackaging food items and monitoring their transport will probably become
very routine in the future.
Chiodo
believes that it is important to educate those in the industry, including,
producers and veterinarians. He says that teaching and practicing preventative
medicine will be a big part of our security.
Early warning
gives us options by taking control away from the terrorists and putting
it back in our hands, Chiodo said.
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