Naig and Feenstra: Protecting Iowa Livestock from Devastating Disease
The United States is in the midst of the largest foreign animal disease outbreak in our country’s history. Since the Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) virus re-emerged in early 2022, over 66 million birds from more than 960 sites in 47 states have been impacted. More than 45 of those cases have been in Iowa, including several this fall. This continues to be a stressful and challenging time for our state’s poultry producers. From turkey farmers to egg layers and game bird producers to those with backyard birds, no segment of our poultry industry has escaped the impact of this devastating disease.
Yet, these hardworking farmers should be commended for significantly stepping-up their biosecurity protocols. When we experienced the spring 2015 outbreak, which was our last big occurrence, Iowa recorded 77 cases impacting more than 32.7 million birds in a three-month period. The spread of the virus between farms was a significant problem at that time. As a result of the 2015 experience, many lessons were learned, and protocols were vastly improved. Today, when new HPAI cases do arise in our domestic flocks, epidemiological investigations have shown that these infections are nearly always the result of wild or migratory birds and not the result of farm-to-farm spreading. The daily focus on better biosecurity by farmers, combined with a faster and smarter response from agencies like the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), has made a noticeable difference.
And it’s important that we continue to focus on foreign animal disease prevention and further refine our response procedures. While today’s concern is Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza, it could be African Swine Fever hitting our nation-leading pork industry or Foot and Mouth Disease threatening our cattle industry tomorrow.
In our individual roles as Iowa Secretary of Agriculture, which oversees the primary foreign animal disease response in Iowa, and as a Member of Congress on the U.S. House Agriculture Committee, which drafts a Farm Bill that funds significant foreign animal disease preparedness and response infrastructure, we are well positioned to advance and implement solutions that will keep Iowa’s livestock industry thriving.
Iowa is home to the USDA National Veterinary Services Laboratory and Iowa State University Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory. These are major assets to our state. Not only are these leading facilities unequaled in the United States, but they are also two of the most consequential animal health facilities found anywhere in the world. Governor Reynolds and the Iowa Legislature should also be commended for providing significant resources last session to finish the next phase of Iowa State’s Veterinary Diagnostic Lab. These facilities, just miles apart in Ames and Iowa’s 4th Congressional District, will positively impact animal health decisions in Iowa, the United States and around the world for decades to come.
Lastly, we need a strong Farm Bill that continues to prioritize prevention, preparedness, and response. While Congress recently extended the current law for one more year, a new 5-year Farm Bill that includes significant resources to address foreign animal disease must remain a top priority in the new year.
Our livestock sector contributes approximately $13 billion dollars to Iowa’s economy every year with families relying on it to make a living in communities across our state. These hardworking Iowans pride themselves on providing consumers with safe and abundant food and have succeeded in making our state a productivity powerhouse in pork, eggs, turkey, beef, dairy and many other products.
Food security is national security. At a time when grocery shoppers have been battered by relentless inflation, it’s critical that we minimize any potential disruptions to our food supply chain. Consumers win when we support Iowa’s family farmers, and we must do all that we can to protect the livestock that they are so proud to raise.
This op-ed was originally published in the Council Bluffs Nonpareil on December 8, 2023.