The 2018 farm bill provided funding for these programs as part of an overall strategy to help prevent animal pests and diseases from entering the United States and to reduce the spread and impact of potential disease incursions. This is the third year that APHIS is providing this Farm Bill funding.
APHIS is awarding $7.6 million for 36 projects through the National Animal Disease Preparedness and Response Program. In one project, the American Association of Equine Practitioners will increase biosecurity and disease prevention in the horse industry by identifying current gaps in biosecurity knowledge and developing and tailoring outreach efforts to audiences at horse races, horse shows, farms, stables, trail rides, and horse events. In another project, the University of California-Davis is working with two Hispanic-serving community colleges to develop a new curriculum on biosecurity in animal agriculture that will integrate with existing programs.
APHIS is awarding $4.4 million for 21 projects through the National Animal Health Laboratory Network. In one project, the University of Minnesota Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory will improve the preparedness of swine producers and veterinarians against African swine fever by providing the resources they need to produce quality laboratory submissions.
APHIS is awarding $4.3 million for seven joint NADPRP-NAHLN projects. Among these are projects to support development or evaluation of point-of-care diagnostic tests for the virus that causes African swine fever, for avian influenza virus and avian paramyxovirus type 1, and for the virus that causes foot-and-mouth disease.
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