The unfathomable effects of the recent outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in Great Britain have hit home with an important message: Agriculture is a prominent force in our lives, even in these high-tech times. There are no known cases of the disease on our continent, let alone in our state, and cooperation between producers and consumers will ensure that we remain free of foot-and-mouth disease. Unfortunately, the crisis points to how vulnerable we may be to devastating natural acts under the current global food system – even for those who raise a good portion of their food in a home garden.

In most cases, it is true that we rely on others to produce our food, and a great deal of what we consume is produced abroad. We trust in the notion that regulations in place to secure our global food supply actually work. In the case of foot-and-mouth disease, the regulations state that meat must be free of the disease for at least six months before exports are allowed. Yet, the British problem was probably introduced by infected meat fed to pigs. An illegal practice must have occurred for the infected meat to enter the British food system. The question is: How do we ensure regulatory oversight on a global scale?

The fact is that our food system is so complex that one incident has the potential to affect the whole world. Foot-and-mouth disease spread from England to France to Saudi Arabia to the Netherlands, and, as of March 22, to Ireland. In those countries, the local and regional impact has been felt by farmers, butcher shops, restaurants, supermarkets and the many industries built around the processing of agricultural byproducts.

As our hearts reach out to those European farmers who are enduring such indescribable hardship, a glance back at our own history shows some ways the global exchange of natural resources has affected native plants and animals.

Dutch elm disease, for example, is caused by a non-native fungal pathogen. Damage is characterized by the gradual yellowing of the tree’s leaves, defoliation and the eventual death of the elm tree. Originally, the disease was transmitted to healthy American trees by a small European bark beetle that probably crossed the Atlantic Ocean aboard a ship. Bark beetles native to the United States have also spread the fungal disease throughout the country over the past century.

Over time, some attempts to control the damage caused by Dutch elm disease included injecting a fungicide solution into a hole drilled at the base of the tree. This treatment slowed development of the disease, but didn’t halt it. Badly infected trees, which have been stripped of their foliage, should be cut down and burned, and the remnants of the fungus destroyed to prevent further spread of the disease.

Overall, the effect of Dutch elm disease has been devastating. Relatively few majestic elms stand today. Another magnificent tree, the American chestnut was also once the most common tree in the northern forests of the United States. These useful trees were valued as a source of food – their nutritious nuts – and for their timber, which was light, yet durable. A blight, also caused by a fungus, attacked the trees and all but wiped out the grand specimens. The disease, like Dutch elm disease, was imported from another country. This time, Asia was probably the origin of the disease, that first surfaced near New York City in the very early 1900s and quickly spread across the country.

Losing magnificent trees is devastating enough. Interrupting the sound production of a global or local food supply is quite another matter. Farming is crucial in our society today. Sometimes we take the availability of nutritious food for granted. We should view agriculture as a major and vital component of local, regional and national security.

We can ensure the security of our food supply in the short-term by purchasing locally grown produce. In the long term we can ensure the survival of a viable food production system by implementing public policies that allow the farmer to remain profitable. We must carefully consider the benefits of suppressing suburban sprawl and the implementation of local ordinances that favor agricultural production, processing and sales.

In the case of foot-and-mouth disease, cooperation between farmers and consumers is essential. You can be instrumental in keeping Maine’s sound food system in good shape by becoming more informed. The U.S. Agriculture department’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Society (APHIS) may be contacted toll free at 800-601-9327, for more information on how international travelers and producers can take precautionary measures.

Diana George Chapin is the NEWS garden columnist. Send horticulture questions to Gardening Questions, RR1, Box 2120, Montville 04941, or e-mail them to dianagc@ctel.net. Selected questions will be answered in future columns. Include name, address and telephone number.