Agri- and biosecurity under scrutiny as multiple smuggling cases surface

KCJ Media Group Ltd.

U.S. officials recently charged Chinese researchers Yunqing Jian and Zunyong Liu with smuggling Fusarium graminearum—a crop-affecting fungus—into the U.S. in July 2024, allegedly to conduct research at the University of Michigan. Prosecutors branded the fungus a potential agroterrorism threat and cited communications suggesting intent and Chinese government funding. Reuters 

Shortly thereafter, authorities arrested a separate researcher from Huazhong University of Science and Technology returning from Wuhan, accusing her of importing biological material linked to roundworms without the proper permits Though deemed low-risk by experts—since the fungus is already endemic and controlled via standard crop protection methods—officials are spotlighting these cases as indicators of escalating biosecurity and national security concerns. AP News

Image Source: Unsplash Polina Rytova