S. HRG. 115–603 SAFEGUARDING AMERICAN AGRICULTURE IN A GLOBALIZED WORLD HEARING BEFORE THE COMMITTEE ON AGRICULTURE, NUTRITION, AND FORESTRY UNITED STATES SENATE ONE HUNDRED FIFTEENTH CONGRESS FIRST SESSION DECEMBER 13, 2017 Printed for the use of the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry ( Available via the World Wide Web: http://www.govinfo.gov/ U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE 32–792 PDF WASHINGTON : 2019 COMMITTEE ON AGRICULTURE, NUTRITION, AND FORESTRY PAT ROBERTS, Kansas, Chairman THAD COCHRAN, Mississippi DEBBIE STABENOW, Michigan MITCH MCCONNELL, Kentucky PATRICK J. LEAHY, Vermont JOHN BOOZMAN, Arkansas SHERROD BROWN, Ohio JOHN HOEVEN, North Dakota AMY KLOBUCHAR, Minnesota JONI ERNST, Iowa MICHAEL BENNET, Colorado CHARLES GRASSLEY, Iowa KIRSTEN GILLIBRAND, New York JOHN THUNE, South Dakota JOE DONNELLY, Indiana STEVE DAINES, Montana HEIDI HEITKAMP, North Dakota DAVID PERDUE, Georgia ROBERT P. CASEY, JR., Pennsylvania LUTHER STRANGE, Alabama CHRIS VAN HOLLEN, Maryland JAMES A. GLUECK, JR., MAJORITY STAFF DIRECTOR DANITA M. MURRAY, MAJORITY CHIEF COUNSEL JESSICA L. WILLIAMS, CHIEF CLERK JOSEPH A. SHULTZ, MINORITY STAFF DIRECTOR MARY BETH SCHULTZ, MINORITY CHIEF COUNSEL (II) C O N T E N T S Page HEARING(S): Safeguarding American Agriculture in a Globalized World ................................. 1 Wednesday, December 13, 2017 STATEMENTS PRESENTED BY SENATORS Roberts, Hon. Pat, U.S. Senator from the State of Kansas, Chairman, Com- mittee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry ................................................. 1 Stabenow, Hon. Debbie, U.S. Senator from the State of Michigan ..................... 2 Witnesses Lieberman, Hon. Joseph I., Co-Chair, Blue Ribbon Study Panel on Biodefense, Washington, DC ................................................................................................... 5 Myers, Gen. Richard B., President, Kansas State University, Manhattan, Kansas ................................................................................................................... 9 Hammerschmidt, Raymond, Ph.D., Professor, Department of Plant, Soil, and Microbial Sciences, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan ....... 13 Meckes, R.D., D.V.M., State Veterinarian, North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Raleigh, North Carolina ........................ 16 APPENDIX PREPARED STATEMENTS: Hammerschmidt, Raymond ............................................................................. 32 Lieberman, Hon. Joseph I. ............................................................................... 41 Meckes, R.D. ..................................................................................................... 47 Myers, Gen. Richard B. .................................................................................... 59 DOCUMENT(S) SUBMITTED FOR THE RECORD: Roberts, Hon. Pat: ‘‘Defense of Animal Agriculture’’, Blue Ribbon Study Panel ......................... 72 Stabenow, Hon. Debbie: Prepared Statement Submitted for the Record from Hon. Claire McCas- kill .................................................................................................................. 134 QUESTION AND ANSWER: Hammerschmidt, Raymond: Written response to questions from Hon. Pat Roberts .................................. 136 Written response to questions from Hon. Debbie Stabenow ......................... 138 Lieberman, Hon. Joseph I: Written response to questions from Hon. Pat Roberts .................................. 144 Written response to questions from Hon. Debbie Stabenow ......................... 146 Written response to questions from Hon. Amy Klobuchar ........................... 147 Meckes, R.D.: Written response to questions from Hon. Pat Roberts .................................. 149 Written response to questions from Hon. Debbie Stabenow ......................... 155 Written response to questions from Hon. Amy Klobuchar ........................... 156 Myers, Gen. Richard B.: Written response to questions from Hon. Pat Roberts .................................. 158 (III) SAFEGUARDING AMERICAN AGRICULTURE IN A GLOBALIZED WORLD Wednesday, December 13, 2017 UNITED STATES SENATE, COMMITTEE ON AGRICULTURE, NUTRITION, AND FORESTRY, Washington, DC The Committee met, pursuant to notice, at 9:35 a.m., in 328A, Russell Senate Office Building, Hon. Pat Roberts, Chairman of the Committee, presiding. Present: Senators Roberts, Boozman, Ernst, Grassley, Daines, Stabenow, Brown, Bennet, Gillibrand, Donnelly, Heitkamp, Casey, and Van Hollen. STATEMENT OF HON. PAT ROBERTS, U.S. SENATOR FROM THE STATE OF KANSAS, CHAIRMAN, U.S. COMMITTEE ON AGRI- CULTURE, NUTRITION, AND FORESTRY Chairman ROBERTS. Good morning. I call this meeting of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry to order. I welcome my colleagues and the witnesses before us today as we hear about an issue I have long felt is of the utmost importance not only to farmers, ranchers, and the agriculture value chain, but also to consumers, the American economy, and the safety of our country. Agriculture security is a broad-reaching issue. It involves many Government agencies beyond the Department of Agriculture. In 1999, as Chairman of the newly formed Emerging Threats Sub- committee of the Senate Armed Services Committee, I became aware of the threat our Nation faced against intentionally intro- duced pathogens to be weaponized and aimed at destroying plant and animal populations. I was invited to Obelinsk, one of Russia’s secret cities, back when we had access to secret cities under the Nunn-Lugar Program, where I saw warehouses of anthrax, foot-and-mouth, Newcastle dis- ease, and African swine fever. Over the next several years, with a great deal of leadership from then K–State president, Dr. Jon Wefald, the National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility, or NBAF, began to become a reality. This facility in Manhattan, Kansas, will be a critical part of keeping U.S. agriculture, our food supply, the economy, and, most importantly, our people safe. Biological threats, whether naturally occurring like the avian in- fluenza outbreak of 2015 or intentionally introduced, could pose great harm to our food supply and the economy. The 2015 avian influenza outbreak was unprecedented, and while the USDA man- aged through the situation as well as can be expected, it illumi- (1) 2 nated just how vulnerable the agriculture sector is to such an event and it has made everyone involved begin to think about ways in which we can improve. Whether that be communication or coordi- nation or preparedness or response, there is always room to gather feedback, reassess, and consider if our current approach is the best approach. Further, today’s hearing is an opportunity to take stock of where we have come since the early 2000s when the issue of ag- riculture security was first visited and discuss where we need to go from here. The Agriculture Committee last held a hearing on this subject over a decade ago, but since that time, the significance of this issue has only grown. Today we will commit to the record updated infor- mation regarding agriculture security. We will begin to examine any needed changes in this arena and continue to work on these evolving challenges. There are several key questions for us to explore: What does risk management look like in this sector? Where are resources most ap- propriately directed? How should a multi-jurisdictional system best function? Before us today is an esteemed panel of experts and public serv- ants who have dedicated much of their careers to protecting agri- culture and the country from biological threats. In October, the Blue Ribbon Study Panel on Biodefense released a bipartisan re- port, ‘‘Defense of Animal Agriculture,’’ which assesses many of the issues we will hear about today. I ask unanimous consent to enter that report into the record. Without objection. [The report can be found on page 72 in the appendix.] Chairman ROBERTS. I am very much looking forward to our wit- nesses’ testimony and the discussion today, and I now recognize my colleague, Senator Stabenow, for any opening remarks that she may have. STATEMENT OF HON. DEBBIE STABENOW, U.S. SENATOR FROM THE STATE OF MICHIGAN Senator STABENOW. Well, thank you very much, Mr. Chairman, and we are so pleased to have everyone with us today, including our former Senate colleague, Senator Lieberman. It is always won- derful to see you. Before my comments, Mr. Chairman, at the request of Senator McCaskill, I ask that her statement supporting these issues be put in the record. I know you are working with her on these important issues, and she wanted it to be a part of the record today. Chairman ROBERTS. Without objection. Senator STABENOW. Thank you very much. [The prepared statement of Senator McCaskill can be found on page 134 in the appendix.] Senator STABENOW. I know, Mr. Chairman, you have long been a champion for a strong agrodefense system, and we are all grate- ful for your vigilance and for the hearing today. I have always said that food security is national security. Every- one in this room knows just how important food and agriculture are to the well-being of our Nation. We certainly understand that in Michigan, where agriculture is our second largest industry, sup- porting one of every four jobs. I am so pleased that we have Dr. 3 Hammerschmidt with us today speaking on behalf of these issues from Michigan and Michigan State. Threats to our agriculture industry would not only decimate our economy, but also change, frankly,