Addressing Foodborne Threats to Health Policies, Practices, and Global Coordination: Workshop Summary (2006) / Chapter Skim
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7 Research and Policy Opportunities
7 Research and Policy Opportunities
Pages 232-254
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. This chapter begins with an excerpt from this report, which explored the critical linkage between animal and human health illustrated in case studies of key animal diseases.
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"We all feel comfortable talking about science," Miller observed, "but the moment comes when science has to be translated into risk, and risk has to be translated into some kind of public policy action." The food safety scientist he envisions will use sophisticated, risk-based, scientifically sound models to determine how best to protect our food supply. ANIMAL HEALTH AT THE CROSSROADS1 Committee on Assessing the Nation's Framework for Addressing Animal Diseases2 National Research Council Synopsis The national framework to safeguard animal health is of paramount importance to the U.S.
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Many people would be surprised by the assertion that our nation's highest priorities must include animal health, yet we must recognize and act on this reality to ensure a safe and healthy future. Among other things, animal diseases critically affect the adequacy of the food supply for a growing world population, and they have huge implications for global trade and commerce.
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· In 2004, a new strain of highly pathogenic avian influenza (AI) spread through Southeast Asia, resulting in the loss of more than 100 million birds through mortality and control measures and dozens of human cases, highlighting the unpredictable and potentially catastrophic na ture of emerging zoonotic disease.
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This report, which embodies the first phase of the study, presents an overview of the animal health framework and examines the framework's overall operation in the prevention, detection, and diagnosis of animal diseases. The proposed second phase of the study (pending supplemental external support)
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effort -- but did examine the effectiveness of the framework as a whole in relation to different animal disease scenarios. In doing so, it sought to identify ways to improve the framework.
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· The workforce on the front lines of animal care is not adequately educated and trained to deal with animal disease issues, and there is a shortage of veterinarians in the workforce for animal disease prevention, detection, and diagnosis. · Greater collaboration between public health and animal health officials can accelerate the detection and diagnosis of animal diseases.
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Recommendations for Strengthening the Animal Health Framework Reflecting on the structure of the framework and based on the findings of its analysis of past animal health events, the committee offers the following 11 recommendations as potential opportunities for strengthening the framework's capabilities in the prevention, detection, and diagnosis of animal diseases. Coordination of Framework Components Recommendation 1: The nation should establish a high-level, central ized, authoritative, and accountable coordinating mechanism or focal point for engaging and enhancing partnerships among local, state, and federal agencies and the private sector.
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The current animal health framework has been slow to evaluate, validate, and implement new scientific tools and technologies that could significantly enhance animal disease prevention, detection, and diagnostic capabilities for the United States. Despite a recent surge in activity related to post-September 11 homeland security efforts and associated focused funding, the active review and implementation of advancing technologies has been inadequate to protect and enhance the health of the country's animal populations and related economic systems.
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Animal Health Research Recommendation 4: Federal agencies involved in biomedical research (both human and veterinary) should establish a method to jointly fund new, competitive, comprehensive, and integrated animal health research programs; ensure that veterinary and medical scientists can work as collaborators; and enhance research, both domestically and internation ally, on the detection, diagnosis, and prevention of animal and zoonotic disease encompassing both animal and human hosts.
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As the United States and the rest of the world become increasingly interdependent, it is essential to identify animal disease risk factors as they emerge and to focus more attention on the sources and precursors of infections. Taken collectively, the recent experience with SARS, West Nile virus, and monkeypox leads to the inescapable conclusion that globalization, population growth, and expansion of human activity into previously unoccupied habitats has essentially connected the United States to potential zoonotic and nonzoonotic pathogens residing throughout the world.
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system and approach for dealing with animal diseases," and the committee regards the international dimension as an extremely critical component of the U.S. animal health framework.
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Addressing Future Animal Disease Risks Recommendation 8: The USDA, DHS, Department of Health and Hu man Services, and state animal and public health agencies and laborato ries should improve, expand, and formalize the use of predictive, risk based tools and models to develop prevention, detection, diagnostic, and biosecurity systems and strategies for indigenous, exotic, and emerging animal diseases. There has been increased recognition and use of well-structured and scientifically based mathematical, epidemiological, and risk analysis models and tools to define acceptable risks and mitigation strategies that can assist in policy and science-based decision making.
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In addition, veterinary graduates are not adequately prepared to deal with foreign animal diseases, public health, and ecosystem health, without further postgraduate studies. According to the Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges (AAVMC)
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Although these losses can be significant, adverse social, economic, and human health impacts associated with animal diseases extend beyond producers or household animal owners. Increased investment in educating the public about animal health will help to reduce disease and transmission; enhance public and animal health; ensure a secure, economical, and viable food supply; and improve trade and competitiveness.
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In addition, the degree to which foodborne illness occurs annually (due to "natural" or accidental contamination) , despite extensive systems in place to protect the safety of the food supply, underscores the limitations of available food safety efforts.
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, led by the University of Minnesota, is one of six academic Centers of Excellence funded through grants from the DHS with the specific 7Investing in food defense research may well carry significant collateral benefits, beyond its primary value to homeland security, in terms of health and economic effects. Much of what we are learning about preventing and responding to potentially catastrophic attacks on the food system can be applied to ongoing efforts to reduce the burden of foodborne illness caused by more common sources of contamination (natural and accidental)
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. Other Homeland Security Centers of Excellence include: Center for Risk and Economic Analysis of Terrorism Events, led by the University of Southern California; National Center for Foreign Animal and Zoonotic Disease Defense, led by Texas A&M University; National Center for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism, led by the University of Maryland; Center for the Study of Preparedness and Catastrophic Event Response, led by Johns Hopkins University; and Center for Advancing Microbial Risk Assessment, led by Michigan State University, in collaboration with the U.S.
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Priorities for research in each of these areas are outlined below. Research Needs: Systems Supply chain security encompasses policies and practices within industry and its regulators to reduce vulnerabilities, minimize disruptions caused by threats or contamination incidents, and maximize the system's resiliency through effective response plans.
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· Analyze the cost-effectiveness of public, nongovernmental, and industry investment in strategies to enhance supply chain security (e.g., use of "smart seals" or radio frequency identification (RFID) tags to track products through shipment)
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· Enhance preanalytical effective preparation of samples for rapid analysis by separation, concentration, and/or purification of select agents from food matrices, recognizing that the complex environments of foods place a premium on preanalytical processes to enable effective detection. · Facilitate the rapid translation and integration of newly developed diagnostic research methods into the national laboratory infrastructure, for example by assuring that new methodologies are appropriately validated and by coordinating surge capacity among laboratories during a food contamination incident.
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food supply and defending it from deliberate contamination. Preventing intentional contamination of the food system requires a shift in mindset: traditional food safety efforts must move from minimizing the possibility of contamination events that can normally happen to preventing those that cannot be permitted to occur.
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2004. Homeland Security Presidential Directive HSPD-9.
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