PROFILE PLUS . . . . More About: Bobby Acord

Bobby Acord is a 29-year veteran of the agency Secretary Ann M. Veneman tapped him to run on November 7, 2001--the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (the Jan.-March 2002 issue of the USDA News carried his complete biographical sketch, following his selection to that position). A native of West Virginia, as administrator of APHIS Acord understands the grave challenges that face his agency and its employees each day.

“This agency is like a corporate conglomerate. We have so many different activities that require such detailed knowledge to make decisions. And the decisions we do make can have such a tremendous impact on agriculture, trade, and farmers,” Acord said.

APHIS has over 7,700 employees and a budget of more than $1 billion. It is charged with working overseas and at U.S. borders to prevent the entry of foreign pests and diseases. APHIS also conducts ongoing programs to monitor U.S. agricultural health and eradicate pest or disease outbreaks when they occur. These efforts not only maximize domestic agricultural production but also facilitate U.S. agricultural exports. The agency also controls wildlife damage to livestock, crops, and natural resources; oversees humane care and treatment of animals; and helps ensure the safety of genetically engineered plants.

Acord believes the way to keep the agency operating at its optimum pace is to be as inclusive as possible with constituents and the states. “I want us to focus on making our programs work together,” he said. “We now have a monthly conference call with the State Departments of Agriculture. We talk about animal and plant health issues and answer questions. We had never done this before. But I believe the more people involved in success the better.”

He credits the outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in Great Britain last year with preparing the agency for the aftermath of September 11.

“We were on high alert and had been since the beginning of February 2001,” he said. “What became a challenge was protecting our employees, our facilities, and security. These were things we had thought about, but now we think about them from a terrorist’s perspective.”

Despite or perhaps because of these responsibilities Acord does worry about losing sight of what is important at the ground level--“reconnecting with the dirt,” as he puts it. “Everyone in the USDA headquarters needs to get out on a farm a couple of times a year,” he said. “We need to get reacquainted with the importance of what we are protecting.”

Last Book Read: “Bias: A CBS Insider Exposes How the Media Distort the News” by Bernard Goldberg

Hobbies: Being outdoors, hiking
Favorite Food: Steak!

Last Movie Seen: “October Sky,” about a West Virginia lad who starts out in the coal mines (“Terrific, a story about success and perseverance”)

Favorite Weekend Breakfast: Eggs, hash browns, biscuits, and a little ham

Priorities in the Months Ahead: Strategic planning (“My view is what happens today, what happens tomorrow is the result of planning strategies that you put in place, six months, a year-- two years ago. You don’t wait until the arsonist shows up to start planning a firehouse”)
--Patricia Klintberg