The Foreign Service Journal, April 2022

THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | APRIL 2022 31 As U.S. agriculture developed and changed, new scientific areas have been added to the APHIS FSO’s technical portfolio. and evaluators to successfully perform the assessments. USDA has used its own JEE results to justify $300 million in funding it recently received under the American Rescue Plan, the 2021 COVID-19 stimulus package. APHIS FSO representation at the G7 Global Partnership Against Weapons and Materials of Mass Destruction Biosecurity Working Group brought focus to the risk of plant as well as animal disease bioterrorism and was instru- mental in the inclusion of OIE and FAO in these international security fora. As these new areas developed and increased in importance, two key “historic” aspects of APHIS FSO work overseas were transferred out of Foreign Service management around 2010. The historic screwworm and medfly programs moved to a separate division of International Services; and the preclearance pro- grams transferred to an APHIS domestic unit, Plant Protection and Quarantine. The Future of the APHIS Foreign Service On APHIS’ 50th anniversary, its FSOs and domestic staff members face realities that make their jobs ever more vital to the success of American agricultural trade: • With the globalization of agriculture—a trend that is here to stay—U.S. farmers and ranchers produce more food than U.S. consumers can consume. They need the export markets that APHIS FSOs are so critical in opening and maintaining. Agricul- ture is a critical component of America’s economic viability. • More trade equals more risk. Mitigations must be negotiated into trade protocols, and many countries will continue to need APHIS expertise in better controlling pests and diseases. • Working with other agencies, APHIS will assume an ever more critical role in identifying and controlling zoonotic diseases in animals before they pass to humans. • Protecting U.S. agriculture has always been a national secu- rity issue. APHIS’ ability to respond to a pest or disease outbreak,