SCHMALLENBERG, SCHMATZENHEIMER, SCHLITZENHEIZER – which is it?

A new virus that few people have heard of
Schmallenberg virus is the new viral disease sweeping through European Union herds and flocks. It is similar to bluetongue disease but not nearly as deadly. It is carried by biting insects, named midges, and possibly mosquitoes.
It causes fever, diarrhea and a drop in milk production in dairy cows. Sheep and other ruminants experience only fever and diarrhea. It may also cause abortions and deformities in calves and lambs, especially freezing leg joints into grotesque malpositions. Newborn animals that survive have either flaccid paralysis or are hyperexcitable, staggering and, in many cases, blind.
Schmallenberg disease was first diagnosed in Schmallenberg, Germany. In 2012 it spread to England. Over 200 farms in England now have infected animals. They exhibit symptoms such as loss of pregnancies, stillbirths, deformities and a loss in milk production. It is believed that in 2012 the virus-carrying midge (a tiny gnat) was blown by the wind from Germany across the Channel to England.
Officials in the U.S. are now “atwitter” over concerns about the virus spreading to the U.S., though at this point there is no evidence it poses a threat to humans. The official agency that monitors foreign disease threats is the Animal, Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), a branch of the United States Department of Agriculture. These are the folks at customs that throw out any agricultural produce that you might bring back when returning to the U.S. I learned that lesson well when they threw out my $200 Kobe steak, which I brought back from Japan.
They are also the folks that monitor health test documentation on animals or germplasm, such as boar or bull semen and embryos being brought to this country. The APHIS folks cover a host of responsibilities that are unseen by most of the public. When Great Britain had the huge foot and mouth disease outbreak several years ago – you guessed it – the Secretary of Agriculture sent veterinary experts from this agency.
Contagious diseases are always a concern. The USDA has assigned APHIS the responsibility of eradicating from the national herd of cattle, swine and other food animals diseases such as tuberculosis, brucellosis and classical swine fever. I, for one, appreciate the effort APHIS makes to protect us from foreign diseases and bioterrorism that threaten health, safety and the economic well-being of the U.S. agriculture.
But there is a fly in the ointment. During this time of heightened disease issues and bioterrorism, the APHIS budget is being cut as a part of the USDA budget. It has been projected that APHIS may have to operate on two-thirds of its normal budget when taking previous budgetary cuts into account.
We all have read about the USDA having the largest budget of any governmental department. And that is true, except few know that the USDA budget also includes financial support for food stamps, Aid to Dependent Children and the Women, Infants and Children program. As a matter of fact, welfare support programs account for more than 80% of the USDA’s budget. I don’t bring this up to criticize aid to those who need it. The issue is that many individuals assume, due to the size of the USDA budget, that farmers get a huge payout in financial aid for developing conservation programs or not planting crops.
This is one of those times, that to protect our national food supply, Congress should step up and budget funds for APHIS. We cannot afford to shortchange surveillance of foreign animal diseases that threaten agriculture. This isn’t the time to let up on our country’s disease surveillance, which is an essential defense of America in this era of bioterrorism and newly discovered diseases.