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Agroterrorism bill introduced in U.S. House

A U.S. Representative from Iowa says a new bill in the House would help combat foreign agroterrorism.

Republican Zach Nunn tells Brownfield the Preventing Lethal Agricultural and National Threats, or PLANT, Act creates a new criminal offense for knowingly and recklessly importing high-risk agricultural biological agents – with increased penalties for individuals linked to foreign governments.

“We’ve got some real big things happening across our country,” Nunn said, “not least of which is this agroterrorism scare that is taking place that could just devastate farmers and crops across our country.”

Nunn says he helped author the legislation in response to some recent agroterrorism-related arrests made by the FBI and Customs and Border Protection.

“We have had three Chinese nationals who have come under false pretense into the United States allegedly to do research,” Nunn said. “They have brought in fungus and a round worm that would potentially devastate billions of dollars in livestock and crops.”

According to the US Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Michigan, the fungus allegedly smuggled into the U.S. by the defendants was Fusarium graminearum. The attorney’s office says it classifies as a potential agroterrorism weapon.

Dr. Damon Smith, professor of plant pathology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, tells Brownfield U.S. farmers are familiar with the fungal pathogen recovered by authorities and often refer to it as head blight or scab.

“What we don’t want to have happen is a variation that enters an area that is more aggressive or produces a different toxin profile than what is locally found,” Smith said.

Smith says the fungus can reduce yield and grain quality in wheat and corn, but can be managed with a combination of variety resistance and fungicide applications.

“In the Midwest here, it’s not uncommon actually for a lot of farmers to deal with this fungus,” Smith said.

Congressman Nunn says the PLANT Act authorizes penalties of up to 10 years in prison for standard violations, increases penalties to 20 years in prison if the offense causes for than $1 million in economic damage or is conducted on behalf of a foreign government, and provides the Department of Justice, USDA and Customs and Border Protection with stronger legal tools to detect, disrupt, and prosecute agroterrorism and bio-crimes.

Nunn says it’s critical to help enable law enforcement to act earlier and intervene before biological agents cause irreparable harm.

INTERVIEW: U.S. Congressman Zach Nunn of Iowa