USDA announces $17.6 million investment to protect livestock welfare and fund research
The investment includes funding for high-priority research initiatives on zoonotic infectious diseases, vaccines, animal welfare, and more
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The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced a $17.6 million investment to advance agricultural research that safeguards the health and welfare of agricultural animals. The investment will fund high-priority research on the highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) and African swine fever (ASF), according to the USDA.1
“Protecting the health and welfare of agricultural animals is integral to ensuring a safe, sustainable, resilient and ethically-sound food system,” Manjit Misra, PhD, director of USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), said in an organizational release.1 “Healthy livestock are more productive and less likely to harbor and spread diseases that can affect humans. In addition, properly managed livestock systems help maintain biodiversity and sustainable land use.”
The investment includes $12.7 million for 27 projects from various universities across the US under NIFA’s ‘Diseases of Agricultural Animals’ program that are conducting research in whole-animal health, as well as disease prevention and control. The program is part of the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI), which awards grants for agricultural sciences.2 The program’s objective is to maintain healthy agricultural animals for a safe food supply.1
Many of these projects are centered on developing vaccines to help control the spread of HPAI and ASF. According to the USDA, HPAI poses a significant risk to global animal health, trade, and economies. Meanwhile, ASF, a deadly disease that affects both domestic and wild pigs, poses a serious threat to the swine industry if it is introduced to the US.1
The following will be 3 of the 27 projects funded by the USDA1:
- University of Georgia: Researchers are working on creating mass vaccination strategies for a common HPAI subtype. This project could also facilitate similar studies for other respiratory viruses impacting poultry and livestock.
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology: Scientists will design and assess engineered vaccine antigens for ASF with the goal of developing a vaccine to improve the disease’s control and swine health.
- University of Missouri: This team aims to develop safer and more effective vaccines for swine influenza, potentially reducing infections in both animals and humans and preventing zoonotic transmission from swine to humans.
Moreover, $4.8M from the $17.6M investment will fund 10 projects through AFRI’s Welfare of Agricultural Animals program, which focuses on bolstering animal agriculture production practices and/or development of novel management strategies that protect animal welfare and the adaption to climate change.
The following projects will be among the 8 receiving funding1:
- Purdue University: Researchers will study the best indicator traits and breeding methods to improve heat tolerance in ducks. They aim to create guidelines for optimal management and breeding strategies to improve heat tolerance in poultry. This research may provide a potential long-term solution for climate change effects on poultry production worldwide.
- University of Vermont: Scientists will explore how early-life management of calves affects their long-term behavior development, emotional state, and physiological stress. Findings are expected to help the dairy industry by boosting cattle longevity and ameliorating animal welfare and care standards.
According to the USDA, the investment is part of the organization’s “One Health” efforts to address issues affecting the health of humans, plants, animals, and ecosystems.
“This research investment underscores USDA’s commitment to strengthening our food supply while protecting human, animal and environmental health,” wrote the USDA in a news release.1
References
- USDA invests $17.6M to protect the health and welfare of agricultural animals. News release. National Institute of Food and Agriculture. September 4, 2024. Accessed September 5, 2024. https://www.nifa.usda.gov/about-nifa/press-releases/usda-invests-176m-protect-health-welfare-agricultural-animals?utm_content=&utm_medium=email&utm_name=&utm_source=govdelivery&utm_term=
- Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI). National Institute of Food and Agriculture. Accessed September 5, 2024. https://www.nifa.usda.gov/grants/programs/agriculture-food-research-initiative
