Members of the Animal Agriculture Coalition released a statement applauding animal health provisions included in the 2018 Farm Bill Conference Report, which was sent to President Trump’s desk for signature earlier today:

“America’s livestock and poultry producers, in concert with veterinarians, work hard to ensure the health of the animals they raise. They play a central role in not only providing nutritious food for families across the U.S., but also in creating jobs and contributing to our country’s economic stability. That’s why producers and veterinarians agree that one of our greatest priorities must be to lessen the impact of devastating animal diseases with a one-of-a-kind program that will strengthen our ability to rapidly identify and respond to them.

“We are pleased that the 2018 Farm Bill Conference Report recognizes this need and provides mandatory funding for research into animal health and diseases as well as measures to help the animal agriculture industry act quickly when concerns are identified. This investment in animal health is a good start and will help ensure that the industry is better prepared now and into the future – simply put, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

“We thank Chairman Conaway, Chairman Roberts, Ranking Member Peterson and Ranking Member Stabenow, as well as their teams, for their dedicated efforts to deliver the Conference Report. Providing greater certainty to the animal agriculture industry by putting a functioning plan in place to address potential issues is critically important. We applaud Congress for moving quickly to pass the Farm Bill Conference Report and send it to President Trump to be signed into law before the end of the year.”

Signed by the following animal agriculture groups:

Alabama Poultry & Egg Association

American Association of Avian Pathologists

American Association of Bovine Practitioners

American Association of Mycobacterial Diseases

American Association of Veterinary Laboratory Diagnosticians

American Dairy Goat Association

American Dairy Science Association

American Feed Industry Association

American Goat Federation

American Horse Council

American Rabbit Breeders Association, Inc.

American Sheep Industry Association

American Society of Animal Science

American Veterinary Medical Association

Animal Agriculture Alliance

Animal Health Institute

Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges

Association of Veterinary Biologics Companies

Biotechnology Innovation Organization

California Poultry Federation

Catfish Farmers of America

Chicken & Egg Association of Minnesota

Colorado Egg Producers

FASS, Inc.

Florida Poultry Federation

Global Cold Chain Alliance

Indiana Dairy Producers

Indiana State Poultry Association

International Association of Refrigerated Warehouses

Iowa Poultry Association

Iowa Turkey Federation

Kansas Livestock Association

Kentucky Poultry Federation

Livestock Marketing Association

Michigan Allied Poultry Industries

Minnesota Turkey Growers Association

Mississippi Poultry Association

Mycobacterial Disease of Animals Multistate Initiative

National Assembly of State Animal Health Officials

National Association for the Advancement of Animal Science

National Association of Federal Veterinarians

National Association of State Departments of Agriculture

National Dairy Herd Information Association

National Grain and Feed Association

National Milk Producer’s Federation

National Pork Producers Council

National Renderer’s Association

National Turkey Federation

New Mexico Wool Growers

North American Meat Institute

North Carolina Poultry Federation

Ohio Poultry Association

PennAg Industries Association

South Carolina Poultry Federation

South Dakota Poultry Industries Association

Texas Poultry Federation

The Poultry Federation: Arkansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, Kansas

U.S. Dairy Forage Research Center Stakeholder Committee

U.S. Poultry and Egg Association

United Egg Association – Further Processors Division

United Egg Producers

United States Animal Health Association

Virginia Poultry Federation

Wisconsin Poultry & Egg Industries Association

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