The Missouri House of Representatives passed a bill that would limit the number of agencies that can enter agricultural facilities and place narrow restrictions on the conditions under which they can do so, reports the Missourian.
Supporters of HB 574 said the primary aim of the bill is to protect Missouri’s farmers from unnecessary government overreach as well as from biosecurity breaches.
Biosecurity is a chief concern especially for concentrated animal feeding operations, or CAFOs, which can be vulnerable to the introduction of deadly diseases like the African swine fever by inspectors.
The bill gives sole authority for the inspection of agricultural grounds or facilities to the Missouri Department of Agriculture, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, county sheriff’s departments and “any other federal or Missouri state agency with statutory or regulatory authority.”
Read the full report here.
