NCJ Number
191695
Date Published
August 2001
Length
30 pages
Annotation
This paper examines definitions of agricultural terrorism and proposes that crops are not particularly vulnerable to attack; It assesses what economic impact an attack using biological weapons would have on American agriculture.
Abstract
Discussions have been made recently about biological threats against agriculture. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has developed a six-point strategy to ensure the security of U.S. agriculture, including terrorism prevention and deterrence, international cooperation, and domestic consequence management planning. USDA requested $41.3 million in fiscal year 2001 for counterterrorism, but other agencies, such as the National Security Council and the Department of Justice, also have a role in preparing against agricultural terrorism. Agricultural terrorism is defined as subnational groups' biological weapons' attacks against agriculture, including crops and livestock. Although a catastrophic attack on the entire U.S. agricultural industry is highly unlikely, regional economies could be affected. If crops or livestock are destroyed, the farmer or breeder is financially impacted. Unless agricultural workers find other jobs, they could be seriously affected. The ripple effect could include stockyards, slaughterhouses, and distributors. Market share could be lost because of a drop in the farmer's reputation. Costs could include replacement and cleaning up the biological agent. As of August 2, 2000, the Monterey Institute has counted 21 incidents that could be considered subnational biological agricultural attacks. Attacks occurred in the United States, Israel, China, the Philippines, Australian and Uganda. Some occurred for criminal motivations, but most are to bring about political changes. Naturally occurring diseases include Foot and Mouth Disease. The Netherlands had to slaughter five million pigs because of swine fever in 1997, and a dioxin contamination in Belgium cost food producers and farmers hundreds of millions of dollars. Naturally occurring outbreaks and those perpetrated by terrorists may be difficult to distinguish, especially if no group claims responsibility. Because the United States grows so many different crops and livestock and those farms are spread out over geographic regions, it is difficult for an agricultural catastrophe to occur. Rather than eliminate a crop, terrorists may instead want to damage consumer confidence with, for example, food tampering. Agricultural attacks have been limited and none has been on the scale that has been envisaged, but little is known about what possibly could happen in such an attack. More research needs to be made to determine whether there is a genuine danger. Publication listings, center descriptions