Parker Speaks At White House About National Food, Agriculture Security
Dr. Gerald Parker, the associate dean for Global One Health at the Texas A&M School of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences (VMBS), spoke at a White House Roundtable on food and agriculture security on Nov. 9.
The roundtable on Strengthening the Security and Resilience of United States Food and Agriculture was hosted by the White House and the United States’ Food and Agriculture Sector and featured key government and industry representatives from across the country.
Parker was one of nine individuals invited to give opening remarks at the event and participate in a Q&A session. His statements covered livestock vaccines/diagnostics, education for the next generation, one health, the importance of food and agriculture to our national security, and more.
“I chose to highlight veterinary medicine, agriculture life sciences, and biomedical engineering, even though the National Security Memorandum provided more emphasis on traditional public health related disciplines,” he said.
As recent events like the COVID-19 pandemic have shown, domestic and global threats have the potential to disrupt the U.S. food and agriculture systems and supply chains. The White House Roundtable was hosted to prepare for future threats and discuss ways to strengthen and secure the nation’s food systems.
The roundtable was followed by President Joe Biden issuing National Security Memorandum (NSM) 16, on Strengthening the Security and Resilience of United States Food and Agriculture, the next day.
“This new NSM is a significant milestone and a strong show of support for the food and agriculture sectors by the administration,” Parker said.
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For more information about the Texas A&M School of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, please visit our website at vetmed.tamu.edu or join us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
Contact Information: Jennifer Gauntt, Director of VMBS Communications, Texas A&M School of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, jgauntt@cvm.tamu.edu, 979-862-4216
