Biosecurity indemnification and attitudes of United States swine producers towards the prevention of an african swine fever outbreak

Abstract

Animal disease outbreaks, such as the recent outbreak of African Swine Fever in 2018, are a major concern for stakeholders across the food supply chain due to their potential to disrupt global food security, cause economic losses, and threaten animal welfare. As a result of their transboundary nature, discussions have shifted to preventive measures aimed at protecting livestock while ensuring food security and safety. Emergency assistance has been a critical response option during pandemics. However, this may not be sustainable in the long run because the expectation of government bailout may encourage risk taking behaviours. Our hypothesis is that an indemnity policy that is conditioned on showing biosecurity practices would increase compliance and reduce government expenditure during disease outbreaks. We developed and launched a survey from March to July 2022 targeted at swine producers across the US. From the survey, we examined livestock farmers' attitudes and intentions regarding biosecurity investment and assessed their attitudes towards the purchase of livestock insurance and reporting suspected infected livestock on their farm. We used a partial proportion odds model analysis to examine the model. Our analysis revealed that intention to call a veterinarian, trust in government agencies and risk perception of farmers were instrumental in the willingness to self-invest in biosecurity, purchase livestock insurance, and promptly report infected livestock on their farms. This provides evidence that biosecurity compliance would increase if indemnification was tied to a demonstration of effort to adopt biosecurity practices. We also show that individuals who have been in the industry for a longer period may become complacent and less likely to report outbreaks. Farmers with a higher share of income from their production operations bear a greater risk from their operational income and are more willing to report any suspected infections on their farms. The data suggest that motivating the willingness of farmers to invest in biosecurity while overcoming cost concerns is achievable.