Objectives include:
– Measure the economic impacts on the U.S. pork production supply chain.
– Estimate the economic welfare impact on the U.S. pork supply chain.
– Estimate the direct, indirect, and induced effects of the U.S. swine industry, allied industries, and non-agricultural industries.
– Determine the duration for which economic indicator impacts can be categorized at the regional, national, and international level.
2023-2025
Biosecurity Plan Evaluation for Texas Poultry Farmers
Evaluation and Identification of Psycho-Sociodemographic Factors Impacting the Implementation of and Compliance to Biosecurity Plans for Relevant Infectious Diseases in Poultry Farmers in Texas
Partnering with SAFOSO and the Texas Poultry Federation, IIAD will investigate the social, behavioral, and demographic factors that affect biosecurity plans among Texas poultry farmers. A deeper understanding of the internal motivations, attitudes, and knowledge about biosecurity among industry will enable the development and improvement of outreach and communication efforts in biosecurity behaviors, with the outcome of decreasing infectious disease outbreaks within the poultry industry.
2022-2024
eModules on Emergency Management
eModules Development on Emergency Management for the WOAH Training Platform
IIAD is part of an international consortium of World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) Collaborating Centres between the WOAH Collaborating Centre Network on Veterinary Emergencies and the WOAH Collaborating Centre Network for Veterinary Training and Education that is developing four eLearning modules on emergency and disaster management to be included in the eLearning catalog of the WOAH Training Portal. This online curriculum and training opportunity will be piloted in English, French, and Spanish to veterinarians with less than 5 years of emergency management experience in addition to veterinarians with advanced emergency management experience.
2024-2026
Feedlot FMD Tabletops in Texas, Colorado, & Kansas
Tri-State Feedlot Readiness Assessment for Foot-and-Mouth Disease (FMD) Prevention and Response
This project aims to allow planners and responders to ensure the realities of feedlot management and operations are factored into proposed prevention measures for facilities threatened by foreign animal diseases (FADs). Likewise, there will also be the opportunity to assess the workforce’s ability, represented by industry and supported by government personnel or contractors, to carry out the proposed activities. This project provides an opportunity to assess what will happen when prevention and response plans address an outbreak in a real-world application, especially during an outbreak’s critical prevention and response phases. Without such assessments, there are increased risks of many negative results, including shortsighted strategic approaches, resource depletion/wastage, delays, and decreased personnel morale. By working with several states and their industries in developing an assessment approach, the project’s products should be applied to Feedlots in other states, thereby multiplying the value of the project. Furthermore, future veterinarians will be allowed the opportunity to attend discussions and gain valuable knowledge and experience.
A series of tabletops will be facilitated by IIAD staff and conducted by State Animal Health Officials, industry personnel, and feedlot managers and staff in Texas, Colorado, and Kansas. Assessments will follow after each tabletop to assist feedlots with determining the most efficient and practical disease prevention and response measures for their state’s plans.
2022-2024
FMD Disease Control & Emergency Management
TOM Disease Control and Emergency Management Framework Revision – Progressive Control Pathway for Foot-and-Mouth Disease (PCP FMD)
This project focuses on supporting the integration of the current Disease Control and Emergency Management Framework competency framework, which is part of the EuFMD project TOM Training Management System, providing a summary of suggested adaptations for central veterinarians in Africa, Middle East, and Asia. The novel competency framework will focus on the veterinary capacity of those countries at PCP-FMD Stage 0, 1, and 2, and on the expected outcomes indicated in the PCP-FMD guidelines.
The framework will focus on integrating the gaps in the individual competencies of FMD and similar transboundary animal diseases control (FAST) in non-free settings in the existing framework. The new framework is expected to allow Veterinary Services to map the competencies of individuals in supporting the activities required for progressing through the Progressive Control Pathway for FMD (PCP-FMD), indicating the relevant competencies and the required level of competence they should hold.
2023-2024
Healthy Border 2030 Roadmap
Completion of the Healthy Border 2030 Roadmap and Development of a Scenario-Based Facilitated Discussion for Emergency Management
This research project is to work with the U.S-Mexico Border Health Commission (BHC) to develop an overall report for the U.S.-Mexico BHC’s 10 priority border issues in public health till 2030. IIAD is working with U.S.-Mexico public health specialists in all border states to address areas for 10 border health issues of importance to public health and the U.S. Health and Human Services (HHS). In addition, the project will focus on evaluating 2 public health SOPs related to emerging diseases for emergency management communication between public health entities in the United States and Mexico.
2023-2024
Influenza Zoonoses Youth Education
Influenza Zoonoses Education Among Youth in Agriculture
This project received another round of funding from 2023-2024 and will continue to focus on the development of influenza educational activities for youth within the United States. The Veterinary Science Certificate Program (VSCP) in Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service will lead project efforts and coordinate with IIAD for the development of a sustainability plan for national actions with the Council for State Territorial Epidemiologists (CSTE) through sponsorship by the Centers for Disease Prevention and Control (CDC). In-person project activities and interactions with youth will be conducted through VSCP.
2022-2024
International SMP-AH Virtual Trainings in Africa
Framework on a Case-based Approach Linking SMP-AH Surveillance and Risk Assessment
With partnering organizations from Africa, IIAD conducted 4 English and French virtual trainings between 2023 and 2024 focusing on syndromic surveillance and risk analysis and assessment to educate epidemiologists, veterinarians, and other animal health specialists located in African regions on Standard Methods and Procedures in Animal Health (SMP-AH) principles and practices. Two additional virtual trainings in diagnostic epidemiology will be conducted in the spring of 2024. Funded by USDA-FAS and in partnership with the African Agricultural Technology Foundation (AATF) and the African Union-International Bureau for Animal Research (AU-IBAR).
2022-2024
Point-of-Care Diagnostic Testing Framework
Joint National Animal Health Laboratory Network/National Animal Disease Preparedness and Response Project – Development of a National of Point-of-Care (POC) Diagnostic Testing Framework and Assessment of Economic Impacts for Importation of Current Foreign POC Testing Methodologies for Foreign Animal Disease Outbreaks
This project will solicit national and international experts to develop such a POC diagnostic testing framework process, refine it via expert elicitation, and then validate it via a tabletop exercise. The result will be the establishment of a national POC testing framework for FADs which can be utilized to evaluate and/or modify point-of-care FAD diagnostic tests that may be used to respond to a future disease outbreak. An assessment of the economic impacts of the POC framework will also be conducted.
In August 2023, IIAD and project partners conducted the NAHLN Point-of-Care (POC) workshop in Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas with 28 key stakeholders in attendance. This project validated the process, identified areas for improvement, recognized planning gaps, and provided input to sponsors from USDA APHIS, VS, and NAHLN concerning the impacts of current emergency response plans.
2022-2024
Poultry Industry Agribusiness Course for SAHOs
National Animal Disease Preparedness and Response Program – Poultry Agribusiness Training for Development of an Enhanced Emergency Preparedness Infrastructure Partnership between the US Commercial Poultry Industry and Animal Health Officials
The project will focus on a national poultry industry training program to provide specialized education opportunities for State and Federal regulatory animal health officials through one-week short courses. The program supports the overall goal of enhancing emergency management competencies of State and Federal animal health officials, protecting the well-being of the U.S. poultry industry, and increasing capabilities, capacity, and readiness of the agricultural community in the face of reportable diseases.
Funded by USDA NADPRP and supported bythe Texas Poultry Federation, IIAD, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension, and TAMU faculty conducted this course with hosts from top producing industry representatives and key major players within the poultry industry. This one-week long course focused on providing specialized hands-on educational opportunities for State Animal Health Officials (SAHOs) and state regulatoryveterinarians regarding the agribusiness functions of the U.S. poultry industries that might be impacted during a foreign animal disease (FAD) outbreak.
Topics covered in the course include basic overviews of the industries and their practices, business and marketing principles utilized to make the industries viable, as well as an introduction to animal health, environmental, nutritional, and biosecurity principles pertaining to hatcheries, breeder broilers, hen houses, and more. The second cohort of state animal health officials are planned to attend round two of the course in the spring of 2024.
2023-2025
Producer Decon Certificate Training Program
Pilot Decontamination Training and Certification Program for Farmworkers
The Institute and Texas A&M AgriLife Extension will be piloting a decontamination training program across all livestock sectors for farmworkers located within underserved populations. The project team will develop a series of online training modules that will focus on skills needed to effectively perform decontamination activities in agricultural facilities and create a strong understanding of why decontamination-related skills and processes are important.
2023-2025
Producer FAD Certificate Training Program
Producer FAD Prevention and Response Certificate Training
With a focus on small-scale U.S. livestock producers within the beef, dairy, poultry, swine, and small ruminant industries, this project aims to educate and provide resources to producers directly impacted by foreign animal disease (FAD) events. Other professionals involved in U.S.-based producer education to benefit from this program include (but are not limited to); cooperative extension educators, FFA, industry associations, livestock quality assurance personnel, veterinarians, and state animal health officials.
These stakeholders will be invited to aid with program delivery, ensuring FAD response efforts are collaborative and streamlined. Public health and agriculture emergency management officials at the county and federal level such as USDA and DHS will greatly benefit from increased FAD response efficiency and strengthened producer relationships with the overarching goal to strengthen the nation’s FAD response.
2023-2026
Strengthening Vet Health Systems for African Trade
Capacity Development of Support of Strengthening Veterinary Health Systems to Facilitate Trade within Member states of the African Union
Funded by WOAH and partnering with AU-IBAR, the Institute will build capacity for the development and implementation of risk and science-based policies and regulatory measures aligned to international standards from SMP-AH protocols. The overall objective is to harmonize animal health and sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) processes to improve animal health, animal production, and trade within the African Union.
2023-2024
Ukraine Emergency Vet Medicine Assessments
Assessment of Ukraine Livestock Industries to Inform International Support for Response and Recovery
Funded by USDA FAS and in conjunction with the Bridges and Ministry of Agriculture Ukraine, the main goal of this project is to determine how assistance can be provided to Ukrainian livestock, sheep, goat, and swine industries to aid in the recovery and re-establishment of a secure food supply by addressing constraints in veterinary medicine and supplies. With the military invasion of Ukraine by Russia, catastrophic damage has been done to Ukraine’s livestock value chain impacting the ability of the country to effectively produce commodities needed for food security.
Invasion impacts, exacerbated by lingering COVID-19 pandemic insults have altered routine supply chains for veterinary medicine and supplies, including, production, marketing, processing, retail, and consumer patterns such that assessments must be done to understand effective support options and approaches. These assessments must be established to serve as the centerpiece of forming an international support effort to aid and assist Ukraine’s livestock industries.
2023-2026
Vet Recruitment Toolbox for Rural Communities
Providing a Community of Economic and Social Support Toolbox for Recruitment of Veterinarians to Underserved Areas
Collaborating with West Texas A&M University and the Texas A&M School of Veterinary Medicine, a national survey will be conducted on veterinary schools, private practitioners, and state animal health officials to determine attributes needed to entice recent graduates and private veterinarians to be recruited to a national veterinary shortage area. Specific educational templates will be developed into a “Community and Economic Social Support Toolbox” with plans to pilot the tool in two Texas counties to enhance the recruitment process of veterinarians within small-town communities.
