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NPPC: “Cautiously optimistic” about FMD vaccine bank in Farm Bill

The next Farm Bill could be the one that secures a national Foot-and-Mouth-Disease vaccine bank. Dr. Liz Wagstrom, chief veterinarian for the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) tells Brownfield Ag News they’ve spent a lot of time on Capitol Hill working on getting support for an FMD vaccine bank to better protect the nation’s livestock, “They’re getting ready to mark up the Farm Bill in the House Agriculture Committee. They’ve said it’s going to be in the first quarter of this year. So, we’re really optimistic that they will provide some sort of mandatory funding within there.”

Wagstrom says NPPC is asking for a five-year commitment of 150-Million a year for the vaccine bank, 30-million a year for the National animal health laboratory network and 70 million for state block grants for prevention and preparedness. Brownfield asked, will they get it?

Wagstrom responded, “We’re cautiously optimistic that we will be there in some level. We’ve heard from the chairman and the members of the committee that they understand how important it is. That they realize this is the only vehicle for which to address this gap.”

The U.S. is one of the few first-world countries that does not have an FMD vaccine bank. She says what the U.S. does have is inadequate to cover any outbreak.

AUDIO: Interview with Dr. Liz Wagstrom~