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Cross-Border Threat Screening and Supply Chain Defense

A Department of Homeland Security Center of Excellence

2024 Forum on Systematic Mapping of Beef Production Risks

Texas A&M ALEC team outside the conference, in front of Kyle Field

The Texas A&M Department of Agricultural Leadership, Education, and Communications (ALEC) partnered with CBTS to conduct a systematic mapping study to identify crucial gaps in our comprehension of agricultural security threats.  By synthesizing existing knowledge through systematic mapping, the aim is to identify knowledge gaps, prioritize research areas, and promote collaboration to develop a holistic perspective on food and agricultural defense and security.  

In support of a study of the first commodity, beef production, we held the 2024 Forum on Systematic Mapping of Beef Production Risks.  This meeting brought together experts from academia, federal agencies, state governments, and industry stakeholders, and served as a platform for knowledge exchange, collaboration, and interdisciplinary discussions.  

Dr. Cliff Lamb, Director of Texas A&M AgriLife Research, introducing the Systematic Mapping project.

At the summit, results from the mapping study of nearly 64,000 scientific articles that addressed specific threat(s) to the production phase of the U.S. beef supply chain (including stocker, cow-calf operations, feed/feedlot production, grass and finishing, and veterinary services) were provided in a series of maps created by the team using EPPI-Reviewer1 software.  At the conference, the team and stakeholders reviewed the findings and discussed potential gaps in the body of research related to beef production threats.  These threats included pests and diseases, environmental, chemical (toxins and pesticides), economic, management, and nutritional and feed-related threats.  Potential solutions and their effectiveness were also explored.   

Outputs from the meeting

Key outputs, including the mapping results and publication of the protocol, will be made widely available to all stakeholders. The systematic mapping database will contribute to knowledge dissemination, facilitate collaboration, and serve as a valuable reference for further research, policy development, and practical implementation in the field.   

Screenshot of an interactive map created using EPPI-Reviewer showing the relationships between threat category, production phase and threat type.  Columns represent production phase, rows represent threat categories, and bubble colors indicate threat types.  The size of the bubble corresponds to the number of articles.  The callout shows an example of one of the articles. 
  1. Reference: Thomas, J., Graziosi, S., Brunton, J., Ghouze, Z., O’Driscoll, P., & Bond, M. & Koryakina, A. (2023) EPPI-Reviewer: advanced software for systematic reviews, maps and evidence synthesis. EPPI Centre, UCL Social Research Institute, University College London  ↩︎