USDA Announces $2.29 Million in Farm Bill Funding for Foreign Animal Disease Prevention

USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has announced a $2.29 million allocation in the next farm bill to address foreign animal pests and diseases. The funding builds off the 2018 Farm Bill allocation for the same effort as part of an overall strategy to prevent animal pests and diseases from entering the United States.

Funding will be carried out through the National Animal Health Laboratory Network (NALHN) and will be focused on projects that prioritize disease testing through stockpiling efforts, enhancing data management through IT standardization and increasing high-throughput testing and technical expertise in laboratories. Current projects already receiving funding include the enhancement of high-capacity testing for transmissible spongiform encephalopathies and African swine fever preparedness.

Read more about funding and current projects devoted to safeguarding livestock welfare here.