Final paper
The food and agriculture sector is one of the sixteen critical infrastructures in the Nation. The industry is mostly privately owned and accounts for one-fifth of the national economy. The food and agriculture sector depend on other areas as well to function, including The water and sewer system for clean irrigation and processed water, the energy sector for power and fuel for production and processing of agricultural products, the transport sector for product transport, and the chemical sector for fertilizers and pesticides for agricultural processes. In most countries, agricultural systems are the backbone of the main economy-sector contributing to political stability (Bhattacharjee, J., Bhattacharjee, D., & Samal, I. 2020).
The food and agriculture sector provides critical services, and it is the government’s responsibility to ensure that the service providers are protected. It should be secured and equipped to withstand hazards. The sector should also be shielded from not only physical threats but also cyber threats. Being one of the Nation’s largest areas, the agriculture and food department covers a lot of segments in the economy, such as farming, businesses, manufacturing, and processing industries. The sector has employed a large number of United States citizens.
There are many threats posed to the food and agriculture industry. Attacks in the sector can derail the country’s public health and economy. The risks can be natural or man-made disasters such as natural disasters, cyber incidents, pandemics, acts of terrorism, sabotage, and destructive criminal activities. Natural catastrophes, such as drought, cause water shortage, which affects the farmers, resulting in a reduction of food production. Intense storms cause costly damages on agricultural structures, such as fences barns and greenhouses (Shaw, A. 2020). Although hurricanes affect the production of food by sweeping off fields, their real impact is seen in the transportation sector. Hurricanes destroy ports and roads; this interferes with the ability to transport food. Food transportation is also disrupted by floods and other weather issues such as frost, extreme cold, and snow, causing the shortage of supplies in some states. This shortage causes a rise in food prices, affecting consumers and retailers. Monoculture agriculture, climatic change, and overuse of aquifers can also affect the food supply in a nation, causing the short term price increase.
Cyber incidents are a significant security threat in the food and agriculture industry. Data breaches are a rising form of cyber insecurity. False data injection is an attempt to falsify data that contribute to real-time decisions (Gupta, M. et al. 2020). Misinformation attacks aim to endanger data integrity ( Gupta, M. et al., 2020). Cybercriminals are on the hunt for customer records, and they highly target companies in the food industry, because of their vast clientele. These attacks are fuelled by weak business passwords and multiple emails shared by clients and business people. Once a cyber attack is successfully made to one company, other companies in the same industry are in danger because the process can be duplicated.
The occurrence of pandemics has a significant economic effect on the food and agriculture industry. The current covid-19 pandemic is a good example. This crisis has seen the shutdown of food establishments and the closing of restaurants. This has caused a decline in the Nation’s economy and loss of revenue. A lot of people in this industry have been left unemployed. The loss of livelihood has resulted in lower living standards. Food accessibility has also been compromised because of the fall of income and the rise in food prices.
Agro terrorism threatens the food supply of the Nation. Terrorists consider the food and agriculture sector a tempting target as it is the most vulnerable, and they have resulted in terror activities, including the introduction of plant diseases. This move is a health hazard to the country, and it causes fear, health complications, economic losses, and social instability. Bioterrorism is the use of biological agents to target humans, plants, or animals ( Bhattacharjee, J., Bhattacharjee, D., & Samal, I. 2020). An excellent example of bioterrorism is the foot and mouth disease, a biological attack on livestock. This disease affects livestock, rendering them immobile, and unable to produce milk. Due to foot and mouth complications, meat production in the Nation has declined, as unhealthy livestock cannot be productive. The disease also affects human beings, although it is not fatal to the human population. Domestic criminal activities pose a significant threat to the food and agriculture sector. There are questionable companies that introduce adultered food to the market. These inhumane practices can lead to health complications. The circulation of adultered food products is made possible by corrupt health officers who accept bribes to overlook these processes. This results in mistrust of the government by the people, and thorough investigations are being done on this matter.
Threats can compromise food and agriculture security and cause significant impacts on the economy and community. They can cause contamination, leading to the development of illnesses and foodborne diseases and economic mishaps. Agro-terrorism starts to assume vital importance since it can cause the agricultural system to lose billions of dollars, cause poor production efficiency, drive high food prices to derail exports, and create economic instability (Bhattacharjee, J., Bhattacharjee, D., & Samal, I. 2020). Agro-terrorism can cause a compromise in the sector resulting in the decline of the Nation’s economy. The Covid -19 pandemic has also shaken the food and agriculture industry, affecting the employment sector. It has caused the shutdown of many food business establishments leading to layoffs and loss of jobs. By compromising the food and agriculture system, these threats cause the reduction of consumer confidence in the Nation’s food supply; this is because criminal activities of food alterations have caused health complications in the community resulting in fear and avoidance of the controversial food. Livestock are susceptible to diseases in warm temperature and are likely to experience heat stress in causing low dairy production (Shaw, A.2020).
The compromise of the food and agriculture industry can lead to a shortage of product supply chains. If a pandemic or a crisis is anticipated, people result in panic buying, which disrupts the supply chain. If the agricultural market is compromised at this scale, the US will face extreme economic destabilization (Shaw, A.2020). The farmer’s health and well being are also at risk as natural occurrences such as pandemics, and calamities cause destruction of properties and even loss of lives. This reduces the production and the number of able workforces.
Food transportation is also affected when the food and agriculture industry is threatened. Natural disasters destroy ports, harbors, and roads; this cuts off some states from the efficient food supply. Extreme weather conditions can gravely affect food transportation through air. A nation’s economy is its backbone. A compromised food and agriculture sector direly affect the economy. The reduction of labor causes unemployment among citizens, and this creates a reduction of the tax generated, affecting the Nation’s GDP. Reduced food production and supply also causes a drop in the GDP due to reduced revenue circulating in the economy. Poverty levels shoot up as a result of a threatened food and agriculture industry. The industry upholds the majority of the Nation’s economy. These issues can spark up conflicts between the government and the citizens, causing unrest. High poverty rates fuel criminal activities, and an increase in crime rates can result from a compromised food and agriculture industry.
The government and critical infrastructure owners and operators of the food industry have partnered to develop strategies and measures to secure the food and agriculture sector and ensure that it can withstand hazards and is equipped to rapidly recover from any effects. These measures ensure the achievement of the five mission areas in the national preparedness goals: prevention and avoiding or stopping a disaster. Protection, to protect the citizens, visitors, and property against threats and hazards. Mitigation is to reduce the loss of life and property by reducing the impact of disasters. The response is to strategize and act rapidly and save lives, properties, and the environment after a disaster or a catastrophic incident.
Preparedness, prevention, and mitigation are significant activities in the pre-disaster stage (Kanal, A. S. 2020). The government has taken preventative measures to ensure security in the sixteen crucial sectors, especially in the food and agriculture industry. These measures include planning and conducting a process that engages the entire community in developing techniques that help to detect threats and come up with executable strategies to prevent them. Effective ways can include coordinated detection, response to carry out operations, and measures to detect, control, and eradicate threats (Burgos-Rodríguez, J., & Burgiel, S. W. (2020). The government has also developed ways to rely on information to the public and warn them against foreseen threats. By partnering with critical shareholders, the government had developed and coordinates counterterrorism operations. Conducting forensic analysis and attributing terrorism attacks has been the government’s top priority. This is done by gathering and analyzing physical and biological evidence. The government has also developed an intelligence cycle to share information and intelligence with the federal, state, and local critical sector partners. To prevent threats, the government has maximized its screening, search, and detection capabilities.
The government has taken up the task of protecting the critical sector against natural calamities through developing, implementing, and exercising protection plans. Warning systems have been designed. These systems are effective and accessible to communicate hazards t the community. To protect the food and agriculture industry sector, the government has established partnerships with the private sectors to coordinate, network, and plan on protection elements. The improvement of cybersecurity is a significant step in curbing cybercrimes by implementing risk-informed guidelines, regulations, and standards.
Mitigation is a community effort, and hazard mitigation plans have been developed according to the risk assessment and communicating this information appropriately. Mitigation includes all actions to reduce the impact of the disaster that can be taken prior to its occurrence (Kanal, A. S. 2020). The government has established protocols to integrate mitigation data in coordination with state and federal agencies. Community resilience has led to integrated efforts to localize risk-informed mitigation plans, which have been developed through community partnerships. Response and recovery are important activities in the during-disaster stage (Kanal, A. S. 2020). To respond effectively to disaster, the community has partnered with emergency management officials to train and exercise response strategies. These strategies are made to inform all the affected people in the society of critical life-saving information and emergency sources. They ensure the basic human needs of the affected are met and concentration in disaster containment. Statistical data of the affected and the fatality rate should be recorded. Measures to start mass searches and rescue operations are also part of the response strategies. Strategies to ensure on-scene protection, operational communication, and protection of public and private properties have also been established.
Recovery is also an essential part after the occurrence of a calamity. The government has developed strategies through pre-disaster planning, which can oversee recovery planning. The difference between accidental and deliberate attacks has to be understood (Forrest, A. 2020). Public warning and information delivery are also important. Strategies to assess the damage done to the economy by a calamity and revive it has been established.
The goal of the National Security System is to ensure that the Nation is fully prepared to handle a threat, be it man-made or natural calamity. The government has a role in ensuring that these security rules and strategies are implemented. The other critical sectors should be equally protected to ensure steady economic growth. These sectors include; chemical industry, commercial facilities, communication sector, critical manufacturing, dams sector, defense industrial base, emergency services, energy services, financial services, government facilities, healthcare and public health, information technology, nuclear reactors, minerals and waste, transport system and lastly the water and wastewater system. The government has done well in partnering with the private sector to implement and launch strategies to attack threats as they come. There are complementary and additional emergency authorities for a particular type of risk, including bio-security, bioterrorism, weapons of mass destruction, and wildfires (Burgos-Rodríguez, J., & Burgiel, S. W. 2020).
The food and agricultural sector may face challenges, the most current one being the Covid-19 pandemic. The threat of plant-based agro-terrorism continues to grow (Forrest, A. 2020). Still, it will always be the backbone of the Nation’s economy as it provides basic human needs and employment opportunities. It will always be top in line for the government and the private sector to protect, because a country without stability in this area, will be an emerging country that cannot feed its citizens. Hence more effort and emphasis are made to strike threats surrounding the food and industry sector.
References.
Bhattacharjee, J., Bhattacharjee, D., & Samal, I. (2020). Agro-Terrorism: A New Peril towards Global Food Security. Biotica Research Today, 2(4), 82-84.
Burgos-Rodríguez, J., & Burgiel, S. W. (2020). Federal legal authorities for the early detection of and rapid response to invasive species. Biological Invasions, 22(1), 129-146.
Forrest, A. (2020). The Growing Threat of Agroterrorism and Strategies for Agricultural Defense.
Gupta, M., Abdelsalam, M., Khorsandroo, S., & Mittal, S. (2020). Security and privacy in smart farming: Challenges and opportunities. IEEE Access, 8, 34564-34584.
Kanal, A. S. (2020). Unit-6 Disaster Management Cycle with Focus on Preparedness, Prevention, and Mitigation. IGNOU.
Shaw, A.(2020). Climate Change: Areas of Threat. TASK FORCE, 14.