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An attack on America's food supply could come in many forms such as: poisoning imported food, burning crop fields, or a conventional terrorist attacks on food centers; however, one of the most frightening and potentially disastrous scenarios for an attack is a coordinated, biological agroterrorism attack released on the nation's livestock or crops. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Agroterrorism is a collective term that describes an intentional criminal attack against crops or mankind using viral, bacterial, fungal, or insect-borne agents. Agroterrorism also includes attacks against animals using infectious pathogens such as Burkholderia mallei (glanders), Bacillus anthracis (anthrax), viral avian influenza, foot and mouth disease, and several equine encephalitis viruses. Agents that could be used against crops include the causative agents of wheat blast, rice blast, rice brown spot disease, and wheat stem rust. The primary goal of terrorists using agroterrorism is to spread fear and cause massive economic loss. Subsequent goals include causing disease and death to humans and animals. The use of bioterrorism agents is a much more practical approach than using explosives, for example, to achieve those results since many of these biological agents are commonly found naturally in the environment and are difficult to detect with modern technology. The effective use of biological warfare dates back centuries and can still can be employed by terrorist groups, lone wolves, and political and religious groups to cause death and mayhem on a grand scale. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Agroterrorism is the deliberate tampering with and/or contamination of the food supply with the intent of adversely affecting the social, economic, physical, and psychological well-being of society. Testimony before the Government Affairs Committee of the U.S. Senate has suggested that agriculture is an area that has received comparatively little attention with regard to terrorism. Methods: In February of 2004, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) Southwest Center for Agricultural Health, Injury Prevention, and Education developed a workshop on agroterrorism designed to engage local community leaders in a process to prepare for and respond to a terrorist event involving the food supply. The workshop was an effective collaboration between NIOSH Agricultural Centers, the state department of health (Texas), a school of public health, and the Texas Agricultural Research and Extension Centers in five urban and rural locations with substantial agricultural production. In order to reach a diverse and geographically widespread audience, the workshop was conducted by synchronous two-way interactive televideo (nine geographic sites). The audience of 155 participants was comprised of numerous stakeholders. The workshop format involved separate modules addressing food and fiber, livestock and poultry, food distribution, and emergency preparedness, with participants developing priorities for future consideration within their communities to address all phases of an event from preparedness to follow-up debriefing. There were 13 additional individuals (for a total of 168) who participated in the workshop subsequently through use of a video. Results: Workshop evaluation components included pre- and post-workshop objective assessment of factual information presented (tests), and follow-up for implementation of priorities developed by conference participants. Statistically significant improvement was noted in knowledge acquisition. The six-month follow-up demonstrated implementation of preparedness planning priorities. Conclusions: This is an effective method of reaching a geographically widespread and diverse audience of community members who will be on the "front lines" of an agroterrorism event. An attempt was made to enhance communication and collaboration among involved groups for effectively detecting and addressing such an event. This workshop can serve as a model for use in other communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on identifying and responding to the psychological dimension of terrorism and its threats to upset the safety and security of daily routines that have been long taken for granted. Agroterrorism is perhaps the most intriguing of all the potential types of terrorist attacks. According to Donald Huber, of Purdue University, food sufficiency promotes public confidence and public confidence promotes political stability. Due to the inelasticity of the demand curve for food, a small drop in food supply would result in a massive rise in food prices.