Last week, a flood of headlines surrounding the 2024 agriterrorism arrest of two Chinese nationals led to a panic frenzy for many Americans. Headlines reported that these individuals were caught smuggling a detrimental fungus into the U.S. illegally. Initially, the headlines led to easy panic over grave concerns regarding domestic food systems. Buzzwords like agriterrorism and food safety swarmed. In addition, the White House and Beijing, who have already been going back and forth over tariffs and allies, are now arguing over visas awarded to foreign students studying at U.S. universities and institutions.
The headlines initially talked about two citizens of the People’s Republic of China who were charged with conspiracy, smuggling goods into the United States, false statements and visa fraud. The headlines are grabbing and would make anyone feel like we are under attack. Further reading shows both people have files on their computers proclaiming support for the Communist Party of China and were caught “smuggling” Fusarium graminearum through airport security at the Detroit Metropolitan Airport. One headline went as far as reading, “Chinese nationals accused of smuggling ‘dangerous biological pathogen’ into the U.S.” While this is technically true, we must do our own research and get the details from multiple sources. By doing so, readers would discover that most plant scientists aren’t over-the-top worried about the situation.
Yunqing Jian, 33, was a post-doctoral research fellow at the University of Michigan while still a citizen of China. She received funding from the Chinese government for her research work, but not from the University of Michigan. Last July, her boyfriend, Zunyong Liu, 34, who works at a Chinese university and studies the same pathogen, was traveling from China to see Jian when Customs and Border Protection officers discovered fungal samples in his backpack, packed in Ziplock bags and paper tissues. During his interrogations, he initially lied to the authorities, and this was the point at which the story unraveled for the two. He later retracted the lie and admitted to the samples, claiming he was going to study them with Jian at the University of Michigan. The samples were unprofessionally packed and had the outward appearance of intentional contraband. The two have studied the fungus for several years. Liu was then sent back to China and not allowed to enter the U.S.
Making the case worse for the two researchers, their computers were confiscated and found to have documents proclaiming allegiance to the Communist Party of China. Furthermore, one search on Liu’s phone found an article titled, “Plant-Pathogen warfare under changing climate conditions.” During Jian’s questioning, she first claimed she didn’t know about Liu’s smuggling of the fungus, but phone records contradicted this claim. She was arrested and is currently being held. Since Liu was sent back to China after the samples were detained and China does not have an extradition law with the U.S., he is currently abroad and would be arrested if he tried to enter the U.S. again.
Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Detroit Field office, Cheyvoryea Gibson, said the couple, “exploited their access to laboratory facilities…to engage in the smuggling of biological pathogens, an act that posed an imminent threat to public safety.”
In a statement last week, the University of Michigan said, “We strongly condemn any actions that seek to cause harm, threaten national security or undermine the university’s critical public mission. It is important to note that the university has received no funding from the Chinese government in relation to research conducted by the accused individuals. We have and will continue to cooperate with federal law enforcement in its ongoing investigation and prosecution.”
What we already know about the pathogen is that it is prevalent in any state that produces barley and wheat. In an interview with ABC News, Caitlyn Allen, a professor of plant pathology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison said, “We’re not talking about something that just got imported from China…people should not be freaking out.”
Gary Bergstrom, a professor emeritus of plant pathology, also said, “Compared to some other things, I don’t think the risk is high. It’s not zero, but it certainly wouldn’t be as much concern as the accidental or otherwise introduction of some serious diseases that we don’t have now.”
Penn State University professor of plant pathology and epidemiology Paul Esker said, “It’s one of the ones that would be at the lower end of the spectrum for risk.”
The fungus is well known for causing “head blight,” which is found in wheat, barley, maize and rice. It is known for causing crop and food damage totaling over $1 billion each year worldwide. If ingested, the fungus can cause vomiting, liver damage and reproductive defects in both livestock and humans. Weather, common farming practices and storage facilities can aid in the prevention of fungal spread.
Currently, USDA maintains regulations through the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service and researchers are able to obtain permits to transport pathogens for research from lab to lab and facilities are inspected regularly. In this case, no permit was obtained, and it looks like Liu and Jian were lazy in their transportation of their research material. They are now caught in the middle of escalating tensions between the U.S. and China, as tit-for-tat policies and talking points between two global powers. — LOGAN IPSEN
