APHIS Releases New Strategic Plan for 2023-2027

Apr 26, 2023

Today, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) published a new 5-year strategic plan. It incorporates input we received from stakeholders on the strategic framework--a summarized version of the plan that we published in June 2022. The plan includes six strategic goals.

They focus on:

Protecting agriculture from plant and animal diseases and pests;
Positioning the Agency's workforce to better meet current and future challenges;
Delivering solutions that reduce the impacts of zoonotic and emerging diseases, and ecosystem changes, such as climate change;
Expanding safe trade;
Managing wildlife diseases; and
Promoting the welfare of animals.

APHIS also released a strategic foresight report. It examines 10 societal, environmental, and technological trends and several future scenarios that the Agency must be prepared to navigate.

Click here to see more...

Video: Advancing Swine Disease Traceability: USDA's No-Cost RFID Tag Program for Market Channels

On-demand webinar, hosted by the Meat Institute, experts from the USDA, National Pork Board (NPB) and Merck Animal Health introduced the no-cost 840 RFID tag program—a five-year initiative supported through African swine fever (ASF) preparedness efforts. Beginning in Fall 2025, eligible sow producers, exhibition swine owners and State Animal Health Officials can order USDA-funded RFID tags through Merck A2025-10_nimal Health.

NPB staff also highlighted an additional initiative, funded by USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) Veterinary Services through NPB, that helps reduce the cost of transitioning to RFID tags across the swine industry and strengthens national traceability efforts.

Topics Covered:

•USDA’s RFID tag initiative background and current traceability practices

•How to access and order no-cost 840 RFID tags

•Equipment support for tag readers and panels

•Implementation timelines for market and cull sow channels How RFID improves ASF preparedness an