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Bioterrorism: A Threat to Agriculture and the Food Supply

GAO-04-259T Published: Nov 19, 2003. Publicly Released: Nov 19, 2003.
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Highlights

When the President created the Department of Homeland Security, he included U.S. agriculture and food industries in the list of critical infrastructures needing protection. The Secretaries of Agriculture and of Health and Human Services have publicly declared that the U.S. food supply is susceptible to deliberate contamination. GAO was asked to provide an overview of the potential vulnerabilities of the food supply and agriculture sector to deliberate contamination and to summarize four recent GAO reports that identified problems with federal oversight that could leave the nation's agriculture and food supply vulnerable to deliberate contamination.

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Agricultural industryAnimal diseasesBiological warfareBiomedical researchBioterrorismConsumer protectionContaminated foodsE. coliEmergency preparednessEpidemicsFacility securityFood industryFood inspectionFood supplyHealth hazardsHomeland securityImport regulationImport restrictionLivestockMad cow diseaseTerrorismTerroristsBiocontainment laboratories