THE FOOD AND AGRICULTURE SECTORS MANAGEMENT OF RISK IN REGARDS TO THE NATIONAL INFRASTRUCTURE PROTECTION PLAN (NIPP)
Matthew Whitworth
Private Sector Homeland Security HLSS305 May 23, 2015
The Food and Agriculture Sector is a critical component to the sustainment of the nation’s infrastructure. The Food and Agriculture Sector provides the nation with sustenance through food and water and is deemed a critical infrastructure and key resource (CIKR). If successfully attacked through a biological/chemical means, the effects on the nation could be detrimental. The Food and Agriculture Sector is considered a critical infrastructure and key resource for the United States. “Interference with the food or agricultural infrastructure could
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It has many components that are completely separate from one another, but are interdependent on one another to successfully function. In an effort to mitigate risk from terrorist attacks, such as a biochemical attack, or natural contamination, the Food and Agriculture Sector must address each aspect of the sector independently. From developing goals and objectives and assessing risks, to implementing programs for prevention and measuring effectiveness. Once all aspects are developed and examined, then the Food and Agriculture Sector can analyze the data and look at the sector holistically. The Food and Agriculture Sector must stay vigilant in its effort of safe practices and continually update and revisit any weaknesses. With a sector that spans the country and has entities overseas, ensuring positive control and safety of livestock and crops is a difficult task. Without proper metrics to assess risks and the inability to effectively prioritize infrastructure, funding will remain limited. The Food and Agriculture Sector will have to continue utilizing the limited funding received and determine the most critical areas to distribute the funding
McCoy, J. J. How Safe Is Our Food Supply? New York: F. Watts, 1990. Print.
The goal of 2011 of the National Preparedness Goal, and a month later by the National Preparedness System (NPS). ‘Prepare’, or ‘preparedness’ is a key term here, as is ‘risk’. In order to properly examine the National Preparedness System these terms… (2011 National Preparedness Goal). The National Preparedness Goal can only work in risk management planning with prudency coupled with dispensation of resources at the local levels. Depending on the budgetary issues the financial appropriation might not be enough to sustain a carefully planned risk management. The forefront for the local authorities to mitigate against risk is funding. Of the pro at the community level are the loyalties of its employees of the local government and local community, and on hand resources that amplifies its footprint with the community in making sure that there is an uninterrupted continuation of life. The local government can device a well thought out plan to activate most of its resources when the alarms are sounded of a pending
Nestle, Marion. Safe Food: Bacteria, Biotechnology, and Bioterrorism. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 2003.
Furthermore, food safety is a major issue in the United States. Foodborne illness has caused an estimated 1 and 6 Americans to be sickened, 128,000 hospitalizations, and cause 3,000 deaths each year (http://www.sustainabletable.org/). These numbers may seem shocking, but they are all too real. All of the high levels
Michael Pollan makes arguments concerning the eating habits of the average American. Pollan suggests, in spite of our cultural norms, we should simply “Eat food. Not too much. Mostly Plants.”
“There are … responsibilities more important than making sure the food our families eat is safe” (Joe Biden). The vice president of the United States does not consider food safety important. The government food agencies such as The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), do not do enough to ensure our safety from food. Our standards of ensuring food safety have dramatically dropped due to government food agencies not doing enough to protect us and making new rules and regulations to hard for food producers.
Most people do not spend their days wondering where their next meal is going to come from, but as the economic situation gets worse and jobs get harder to find it is becoming an every occurring issue in the United States today. Not only will some of us have to worry about with what money will we buy our food, but now we will all start having to worry about where our food is coming from and is it safe for us to consume. We are moving toward a safer tomorrow every day by regulating certain parts of our food supply system. No matter how long it takes, it is clear that there is always opportunity for improvement in making our Nation healthier and safer.
When considering the topic of poverty and hunger, many Americans look outside the borders of the United States. However, food insecurity is an issue that plagues millions of American households each year. The United States Department of Agriculture found that 14.5% of American households faced food insecurity during 2012. These households were defined as having “difficulty at some time during the year providing enough food for all their members due to a lack of resources” (Nord, Singh, Coleman-Jensen).
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) helps keep the health of food in place and checks for any abnormalities in our foods (“Safety Inspections.”). Any food that is processed outside of the United States is sent to a certain port through which the USDA can inspect and clear these imports to make sure they are safe for consumer consumption. The Agricultural Quarantine Inspection (AQI) program is a program within the USDA that helps find and dispose of any inflected plants or animals (“Agriculture Quarantine Inspection.”). The AQI will analyze the risk this disease and possibly find a way to treat it. The trucks or aircraft used in the transportation of the infected product are also inspected to stop the spread of the disease. Governmental programs and services of this
Understanding how these hazards come about is an important part of preventing instances of foodborne illness and infection and figuring out how newer and more dangerous hazards may be developed in the future. The fact is that average people and the decisions that they make assume a significant role in the practice of food safety. Hazards as they relate to food are issues that are easily resolved when people are better informed about the subject, and take the necessary precautions to avoid them. In this paper, we’ll explore the different types of food hazards as they relate to foodborne diseases and infections, how they impact society as a whole, and what is being done to prevent
In the United States of America, the richest nation of the world, one in six Americans do not have enough food to eat. Have you ever wonder why there are so many food banks and food pantries throughout the country? They are not simply, as you thought, existent to offer emergency food assistance. Indeed, they are the main sources of food to millions of food-insecure Americans. Food insecurity, the state of not having sufficient quantity of affordable and nutritious food, has been very widespread and common in America. It affected millions of Americans and has been increasing dramatically in recent years; in 2012, more than 48 millions of food-insecure Americans rely on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) (McMillan). The depth
The public becomes anxious about the food safety for some frequently occurred agriculture products’ safety accidents in recent years. To minimize the hidden danger of
Decades later, and even in a new age of American “freedom” and “opportunities,” not much has really changed. In the American food industry, the presence of an oppressive class system is very rampant; hidden from view, but influential as ever. Because the way the food reaches our plates straight from the stores makes it seem like a simple method of growing and transporting, the complex system, or system of systems, is very much hidden behind a wall of what it seems to be. Citizens fail to realize that in this food supply chain, everyone plays a vital role, whether directly or passively contributing to the system. In 1880, roughly “80% of Americans worked in agriculture toiling to feed themselves and others,” which is now reduced to 2% of Americans
... and nutritious experience by giving people actual experience to see, feel and taste what is nutrition about (Hegler, 2010).
The growth of the world’s population has led to a growth in animal agriculture, because as population grows, the need for food does as well. Animal agriculture is the use of animal farms to produce animal products that are then consumed by the general public. As agribusiness expands, issues such as the need for farm insurance and animal rights have received more awareness. Modern day industrialism is being applied to animal agriculture in developed nations such as the United States and Canada. Farm Foundation, a nonprofit organization focused on research in agribusiness and improving the economy through agriculture, claims that “the North American livestock industry is expected to