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Livestock sector unsure if Farm Bill will require FMD vaccine bank funding

The livestock sector still isn’t sure if the Foot and Mouth Disease vaccine bank will be funded in the next farm bill.

National Cattlemen’s Beef Association president-elect Jennifer Houston of Sweetwater, Tennessee, says she expects the vaccine bank to be authorized with some degree of funding in the 2018 Farm Bill.

“Obviously, we asked for full funding for five years realizing that was a big ask, so I don’t think we’ll get that.  But I think we’ll get enough (funding) to get us started on the process, and then we’ll figure out a way to fund from there on out.”

Both the House and Senate farm bills established a vaccine bank for Foot and Mouth Disease, but only the House version included mandatory funding.

Speaking to Brownfield at the Minnesota Cattle Industry Convention in Alexandria, Houston says lawmakers need to get the legislation across the finish line.

“We’ve got a couple weeks.  I think Congress is going to be there until December 21st.”

She says NCBA is also curious about some of the final conservation language in EQUIP, as well as dollars for research and foreign market development.