After the overblown hype given to a potential H1N1 swine flu pandemic last year — not to mention SARS before it — most people will be reticent to believe the threat the next time a similar outbreak starts to spread. But according to the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization, the risks of animal disease outbreaks that will harm humans are real.
They are also becoming more expensive.
“The threats are very real. Deadly and economically devastating livestock epidemics have existed throughout history but there is no doubt that more pathogens are emerging — and spreading,” Lubroth said.
The 2001 outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in the United Kingdom cost between $25 billion and $30 billion, while the 2002-2003 outbreak of SARS cost China, Canada, Hong Kong, Singapore between $30 and $50 billion, FAO said.
“Governments could save billions of dollars by stepping up the prevention and control of high impact animal diseases, some of which pose a direct threat to human health,” FAO said.
With outbreak preparedness — and all risk management, really — it’s hard not to fall victim to “boy who cried wolf” syndrome. For us in the risk and insurance media, it’s doubly hard. With a mission to help spread the word on risks that rarely develop into worst-case scenarios, the mere mention of a new threat sounds like hype used to drum up interest in an intriguing story where the parasite takeover of the planet is imminent.
But while that’s not realistic, neither is the idea that a major pandemic will never again cause major damage to society. It has happened too many times in the past to ignore the reality that it will likely happen again — particularly as populations boom and global interconnectivity brings more and more previously isolated cultures into contact with one another.
And apparently the UN believes that the source may very well be domesticated animals.
We should probably listen to them.
They’re coming to get you.
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Jared Wade is co-editor of Risk Management Monitor and senior editor of Risk Management magazine, where he has worked since 2002. You can follow him on Twitter @RiskMgmt and find more of his writing at JaredWade.com.
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Nice work! great blog