Homeland Security Selects Texas A&M University and University Of Minnesota to Lead New Centers of Excellence on Agro-Security

Release Date: 04/27/04 09:40:00

For Immediate Release
Press Office
Contact: 202-282-8010
April 27, 2004

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security today announces that Texas A&M University and the University of Minnesota have been chosen to lead two new Homeland Security Centers of Excellence (HS-Centers) on agro-security. The Department anticipates providing Texas A&M University, the University of Minnesota and their partners with a total of $33 million over the course of the next three years to address security in two key agricultural sectors -- foreign animal diseases and food security. Homeland Security and these universities will soon begin grant negotiations to formalize their partnerships.

"I am delighted that Texas A&M University and the University of Minnesota and their teams are partnering with Homeland Security in our efforts to address agro-security challenges," said Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge. "I am confident that the cooperative work of these two Centers of Excellence will help further the Bush Administration's efforts to ensure the security of the nation's food supply and protect against foreign animal diseases."

"Protecting our food and agriculture systems is a top priority for President Bush," said Agriculture Secretary Ann M. Veneman. "Research conducted at these institutions will greatly enhance our ability to protect against animal and plant pests and diseases and food pathogens."

The Department of Homeland Security anticipates providing Texas A&M University and its partners with $18 million over the course of the next three years for the study of high consequence foreign animal and zoonotic diseases. Texas A&M University has assembled a team of experts from across the country, which includes partnerships with the University of Texas Medical Branch, University of California at Davis, University of Southern California and University of Maryland. Texas A&M University's HS-Center, which will be known as the National Center for Foreign Animal and Zoonotic Disease Defense, will work closely with partners in academia, industry and government to address potential threats to animal agriculture including foot-and-mouth disease, Rift Valley fever and Avian influenza. Their research on foot-and-mouth disease will be carried out in close collaboration with Homeland Security's Plum Island Animal Disease Center. The HS-Center's efforts will be headed by Dr. Neville P. Clarke, Director, Agriculture Bio-terrorism Institute, Texas A&M University.

The University of Minnesota's HS-Center, known as the University Center for Post-Harvest Food Protection and Defense, will address agro-security issues related to post-harvest food protection. The University of Minnesota's team includes partnerships with major food companies as well as other universities including Michigan State University, University of Wisconsin at Madison, North Dakota State University, Georgia Institute of Technology, Rutgers University, Harvard University, University of Tennessee, Cornell University, Purdue University and North Carolina State University. Homeland Security anticipates providing the University of Minnesota and its partners with $15 million over the course of the next three years to establish best practices and attract new researchers to manage and respond to food contamination events, both intentional and naturally occurring. Dr. Francis F. Busta of the University of Minnesota's Department of Food Science and Nutrition will head the HS-Center's efforts.

Agro-security is a priority for the Department of Homeland Security and the Bush Administration as a whole. The development and promotion of higher education programs for the protection of animal, plant, food supply and public health were some of the measures President Bush called for in Homeland Security Presidential Directive Nine: Defense of the United States Agriculture and Food, which was issued on January 30, 2004. The Department of Homeland Security and its academic partners will work closely with the Departments of Agriculture and Health and Human Services to ensure the success of these important efforts.

In December 2003, Homeland Security's Science and Technology Directorate released a Broad Agency Announcement calling for proposals focusing on research efforts to address agro-security. A team of external expert evaluators, including officials from the Department of Agriculture, Department Health and Human Services' Food and Drug Administration, Environmental Protection Agency and academia, reviewed the 23 proposals received based on merit. Their recommendations, along with those from experts within Homeland Security and other federal agencies, were used to assess the relevance of the proposed research to the Department's mission. This process resulted in site visits to seven different institutional sites and their partners, and the eventual selection of Texas A&M University and the University of Minnesota.

The HS-Centers program, which is operated by the Department's Science and Technology Directorate, is establishing an integrated network of university-based centers that will conduct multi-disciplinary research and develop innovative educational programs for critical Homeland Security missions. Through this program, Homeland Security and partner universities bring together the nation's best experts and focus its most talented researchers on a variety of threats that include agricultural, chemical, biological, nuclear and radiological, explosive and cyber terrorism as well as the behavioral aspects of terrorism.

In November 2003, the University of Southern California, partnering with the University of Wisconsin at Madison, New York University, North Carolina State University, Carnegie Mellon University and Cornell University was chosen to house the first HS-Center, known as the Homeland Security Center for Risk and Economic Analysis of Terrorism Events. Their efforts will now also include support of these new agro-security Centers of Excellence.

In 2004, Homeland Security plans to establish additional HS-Centers across a variety of research and development areas of interest to the Department.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Science and Technology Directorate serves as the primary research and development arm of the Department, utilizing our nation's scientific and technological resources to provide federal, state and local officials with the technology and capabilities to protect the homeland.

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This page was last reviewed/modified on 04/27/04 09:40:00.