Maintaining a vigilance for foreign animal diseases.

The incursion of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) into the United Kingdom in February 2001 served as a wakeup call for North American agriculture. As the livestock health crisis in the United Kingdom progressed, it became increasingly evident that the United States, Canada, and Mexico were also susceptible to an incursion of a foreign animal disease. The terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, and the subsequent anthrax mailings reaffirmed the fact that the United States is vulnerable to an infectious assault, regardless of whether it is intentional or accidental.