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- The Animal and Plant Health inspection Service (APHIS) is responsible for
protecting and promoting U.S. agricultural health, administering the Animal
Welfare Act, and carrying out wildlife damage management activities.
The APHIS mission is an integral part of U.S. Department of Agriculture's
(USDA) efforts to provide the Nation with safe and affordable food. Without
APHIS protecting America's animal and plant resources from agricultural pests
and diseases, threats to our food supply and to our Nation's economy would be
enormous. For example, if Mediterranean fruit fly and Asian longhorned beetle,
two major agricultural pests, were left unchecked by APHIS, production and
marketing losses of several billions of dollars would occur annually in this
country. And, if APHIS was not on the job as the first line of defense, 24
hours a day, 7 days a week, animal diseases like foot-and-mouth disease and
bovine spongiform encephalopathy (mad cow disease) could devastate our
livestock industry and our food supply. All these plant and animal pests and
disease threats could cost billions of dollars in lost domestic and
international markets and have a huge impact on U.S. consumers, but APHIS has
aggressively and successfully worked to prevent and respond to these
situations.
Website: "http://www.aphis.usda.gov/ppq/"
[Summary provided by the USDA.]
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