Secure Food Supply Planning Takes Root in Kansas By: Sandy Johnson, Emergency Management Coordinator, Kansas Department of Agriculture Emergency planners have been preparing for an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) for decades. In 2001 when the United Kingdom experienced their catastrophic outbreak, Kansas policy makers were quick to develop contingency plans specific to FMD. Animals were lost, tourism was hugely affected and behavioral health consequences were real. That same year terrorists attacked the U.S. and a terrorist nexus was added to our planning process — what if someone did this on purpose? The Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services publicly announced his surprise that no one had thought to attack our food supply, which had few protections in place. Homeland Security Presidential Directive No. 9 added the food and agriculture sector to the nation’s critical infrastructure and the table was set. Sixteen years later…what have we accomplished? In Kansas, more than 100 FMD exercises and trainings have been conducted, and policy makers have attended many national meetings. After the second outbreak in the U.K. in 2007, it quickly became evident that stopping the movement of susceptible species (cattle, swine, sheep and goats) was absolutely critical in stopping the spread of footand-mouth disease. Foot-and-mouth disease is the most infectious known animal disease. The World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) has strict reporting requirements, and many coun-
tries are currently vaccinating for FMD where it is endemic. The U.S. has an FMD free without vaccination status which is the most coveted. This status opens overseas markets that are not available when vaccination occurs or disease is present. Keeping the U.S. free of FMD is a key priority for the U.S. Department of Agriculture and for state animal health officials. Eradicating the disease if an outbreak were to occur has been a key mission of Kansas animal health authorities since the last outbreak in the U.S. in 1929. Since animals can carry the disease for several days before showing symptoms, and due to the nature of animal movement and Kansas being an import state, stopping movement of animals became a key strategy. This critical response strategy must be implemented immediately to obtain the maximum benefit. Obviously, this strategy is not easy to accomplish. Kansas planners from a variety of organizations have spent years working with law enforcement, transportation officials, industry representatives and elected officials to develop plans and procedures to make the strategy actionable. At the same time, it was clear that a prolonged stoppage of animal movement would devastate the industry. Milk needs to move immediately to avoid shortages and environmental damage. Pigs outgrow pens. Cattle need to move to slaughter. How do we allow movement without spreading the disease? Secure Food Supply Plans started with the Secure Egg Supply and have evolved to include all poultry (due to an
