Growing up on a New Mexico ranch, veterinarian and public health leader Megin Nichols says she learned early the health of animals, humans and the environment are deeply connected.
Initially planning to practice small animal medicine, she says her plans began to pivot when she met a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) epidemic intelligence service officer who sparked her interest in public health. That realization led her to pursue a master’s degree in public health at the University of Minnesota, with a focus on food safety and biosecurity. Her career has included roles in local, state and federal health departments, investigating foodborne illness outbreaks and developing strategies to prevent them.
“Life has a way of taking you in places you never anticipated,” she shared during the 2025 Henry C. Gardiner Global Food Systems Lecture Oct. 6 at Kansas State University.
Today, as the CDC’s director in the division of foodborne, waterborne and environmental diseases, she lends her expertise to efforts involving disease investigation, food safety, antimicrobial resistance and agriculture literacy.
One Health: Connecting Animal Disease and Human Health
Nichols’ work focuses on the One Health concept.
“One Health is recognizing the health and well-being of humans, of animals and our environment are all interconnected,” she explains. “One Health is something that many of us do every single day and are very, very aware of, especially if you have ties to agriculture and the land. But One Health as a concept oftentimes is difficult to fully understand.”
Nichols says One Health is:
- Ongoing relationships with animal agencies.
- Understand the culture of agriculture.
- Having access to integrated human and animal surveillance.
- Protocols for conducting joint response investigations.
- Agreements for sharing biological samples and lab results.
- Established lines of communication with agriculture and animal industry.
- Plans for unified communication messaging.
- Need to build linkages and trust before and outbreak.
“What happens in one area can significantly impact others — whether it’s a wildfire, a disease outbreak or environmental changes,” Nichols summarizes.
Pandemic and Disease Response Insights
Nichols was a leader in investigating and finding unique solutions for the livestock industry and specifically meat packing industry related to COVID-19.
“In April 2020, I got a call from my supervisor saying there are some meat, poultry packing plants that are going down because of labor shortages and illness,” she explains.
She selected and lead a team to figure out how to get the plants opened back up safely and to find unique solution to deal with the related animal welfare issues.
Summarizing the experiences, Nichols reports the estimated economic cost of COVID-19 is $14 trillion. Along with supply chain disruptions the industry experienced changes in consumer behavior, labor shortage and complex operations challenges. On a positive note, she says the industry did experience a lot of innovation and uptake of technology due to the pandemic, which resulted in innovative approaches to workplace safety and communication.
“We saw innovative strategies where if one person got sick, they looked around that worker and said, ‘OK, who do we need to monitor quickly for symptoms?’” she says.
Nichols also discussed the increase in salmonella outbreaks during the pandemic. She links the rise to the increase in backyard poultry ownership and the improper handling of backyard chickens.
“Many new chicken owners were unaware of disease transmission risks,” she explains.
Nichols also shared insights to H5N1 influenza and emphasized the complexity of tracking and preventing. She highlights the need for integrated, cross-species surveillance and communication strategies.
She also touched on emerging threats, including New World screwworm (NWS). Her message emphasized the importance of prevention, control and preparedness.
She shares these five key strategies related to NWS:
- Surveillance. Early dection through wound inspections and reporting in livestock.
- Sterile Insect Technique (SIT). Ongoing release of serile male flies to prevent reproduction.
- Biosecurity. Movement control of imported animals and monitoring at entry points.
- Public Awareness. Education for doctors, ranchers, veterinarians and travelers.
- Rapid Response Planning. Multi-agency coordination to contain outbreaks swiftly and deploy sterile flies.
Agricultural Literacy, Communication is Key
“Growing up in the middle of nowhere, I also came to understand that not everyone appreciates — or even understands — where their food comes from,” Nichols says.
She shared a 1993 study that revealed significant gaps in public knowledge about agriculture. She summarizes understanding food systems involves knowing:
- Where food comes from.
- How it’s produced.
- Its impact on economy, environment and technology.
Throughout her lecture she shared the importance of transforming complex scientific concepts into engaging, accessible insights that resonate with students, farmers, ranchers and public health professionals alike.
“It doesn’t matter how much information we have if we don’t get it out to the people,” Nichols says.
She stresses the importance of agricultural communication specialists in translating scientific information and engaging audiences.
“Don’t leave the communications to the scientists,” she says.
Nichols emphasizes that agricultural literacy and effective communication are crucial for bridging knowledge gaps and building public understanding of food systems.
She shares this advice for agricultural advocates:
- Bring agricultural perspective to discussions by speaking up and sharing lived experiences.
- Challenge misconceptions with personal stories by focusing on storytelling rather than technical details.
- Understand your audience and use relatable language and provide context.
Nichols stresses the importance of preparedness and collaboration. She explains the importance of local-level discussions and community preparedness, suggesting that some of the most effective emergency preparedness conversations happen “at the coffee house” or during casual community gatherings.
