Disease surveillance and the threat of agro-terrorism to the United States food supply

Terrorism

Global Terrorism

Preslar, D.B. (2000). The role of disease surveillance in the watch for agro-terrorism or economic sabotage. Retrieved from the Federation of American Scientists Web site: http://www.fas.org/ahead/bwconcerns/agroterror.htm24 Aug. 2007. This article discusses agro-terrorism, a facet of terrorism that is particularly alarming, because it seems as if it would be so easy to accomplish in so many countries, including our own. This was actually written before the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, which makes it all the more eerie. The author opens the document with the statement "The threats of terrorism and economic sabotage against agriculture in the United States are neither fixed nor certain. Some have said that it is not a matter of 'if.' But 'when'" (Preslar, 2000). The author discusses the U.S.'s own stockpiling of biological weapons, the threat to the food supply, and discusses some of the ways terrorists could undermine our trust in the food supply and the U.S. ability to manage and protect the food supply.

This is a worrisome article because it indicates just how vulnerable we are to global terrorism and how unprepared we are in so many areas. The food supply is extremely vulnerable, and that makes all of us vulnerable, as well. The author also maintains that inspection at borders and inspection stations have kept most pathogens and problems from entering the country, but we have to wonder, how long will that last? This applies to this course because it is a true threat of terrorism that could occur here or anywhere around the world.