(NAFB.com) – The National Pork Producers Council celebrated the Senate’s unanimous passage of Senate Bill S.759. It’s known as the “Beagle Brigade Act, and it provides statutory authority and reliable funding for the National Dog Training Center. “American agriculture relies on the National Dog Detector Training Center to prevent the introduction of foreign animal and plant diseases that would cripple our food supply,” says NPPC President Lori Stevermer. “For the pork industry, the ‘Beagle Brigade’ is the first line of defense for keeping threats from foreign animal diseases, like African Swine Fever, out of the United States.” Stevermer also says they appreciate Iowa Senator Joni Ernst and their Senate supporters and urge the House to take this up before the end of the year. The agriculture canine teams of the Customs and Border Protection bolster national security by performing critically important inspections at U.S. ports of entry, and this bill strengthens the program.