text: QUESTIONS OVER MAD COW DISEASE IN CANADA: Following an “atypical” case of mad cow disease, or bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), in Canada, some food industry analysts are questioning the potential impact to the U.S. beef industry. It’s the first case there in six years, and analysts are less concerned about spread than they are disruption to Canadian beef imports to the United States. A 2003 breakout in Alberta, Canada, for instance, resulted in the closure of 40 export markets. (AC: The globalized food chain and industrial farming are always susceptible to the spread of infectious diseases. DHS has run at least one exercise in the past year to game out a response to a swine fever outbreak. For now, Canadian officials say this case of BSE should not affect beef markets. However, as always, we recommend readers find local sources for as much of their food as possible. Canada is the top source of imported beef to the United States, followed by Mexico and New Zealand. – M.S.)NATIONAL SECURITY LEGISLATION FOR SUPPLY CHAIN PROTECTION: Congressional members on the House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Oversight have introduced legislation to strengthen the “security of the American supply chain and prevent the offshoring of America’s critical production to nations including China”. This legislation would create a National Critical Capabilities Committee (NCCC) whose responsibilities would include reviewing and blocking “certain U.S. production offshoring, development, or manufacturing of identified critical national capabilities being made within adversarial nations.” Representatives are pushing key companies in these industries to, at a minimum, report any proposed offshoring of supply chains to the United States government. (AC: Supply chain disruptions have motivated action in both the public and private sectors to secure sources and provide a buffer if another major supply chain disruption occurs in the future. Actions by the government mirror similar efforts within the private sector that reflect a change in mindset away from a total “just-in-time” delivery system that prioritizes efficiency to maximize profit. This mentality prioritizes limiting risk and is a slow process to implement when the nation still is impacted by current supply chain bottlenecks. While public and private sector reasons differ, the solutions proposed are similar from dual sourcing of raw materials, increased inventory, and nearshoring of supplier and production. – D.F.) SENATORS ATTEMPT TO ALLEVIATE RISING FOOD PRICES: U.S. Senators are acting on farmer and ranchers’ financial constraints from shrinking profit margins and higher input costs. The Senators point to the increasing food cost for consumers being rooted in factors outside the control of farmers and ranchers within the nation. In a letter to financial regulators, Senators urge regulatory flexibility for community banks, credit unions, and farm credit institutions to extend credit to farmers and ranchers that are facing price rises due to an “unprecedented increase in federal spending” and supply chain bottlenecks. The Senators emphasized inflation impacts to food cost due to estimates they’ve been provided suggesting “that heightened inflation will remain well into next year.” The numbers provided to financial institutions reflect that fertilizer prices have increased by 265% since May 2020, diesel prices increased by 50%, and used farm machinery prices are up by 34%. (AC: Food price increase due to inflation have previously been highlighted in Forward Observer reports this week. The push from Senators to alleviate the pressure placed on Farmers and Ranchers reflect the growing concern of food price increase not alleviating in the near-term. Outlooks on inflation and supply chain constraints are forecasted to continue into the next year. – D.F.)LOW INTENSITY CONFLICT INTSUMFar Left Activity Rollup & OutlookEASTFUTURENew York, New YorkSize: TBD