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United States Department of Agriculture

February 16, 2024

"USDA" redirects here. For other uses, see USDA (disambiguation).
Not to be confused with FDA.

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is an executive department of the United States federal government that aims to meet the needs of commercial farming and livestock food production, promotes agricultural trade and production, works to assure food safety, protects natural resources, fosters rural communities and works to end hunger in the United States and internationally. It is headed by the secretary of agriculture, who reports directly to the president of the United States and is a member of the president's Cabinet. The current secretary is Tom Vilsack, who has served since February 24, 2021.[2]

United States
Department of Agriculture
Seal of the USDA
Logo of the USDA

Flag of the USDA
Agency overview
FormedMay 15, 1862; 161 years ago (1862-05-15)
Cabinet status: February 15, 1889
Preceding agency
  • Agricultural Division
JurisdictionU.S. federal government
HeadquartersJamie L. Whitten Building
1301 Independence Avenue, S.W., Washington, D.C.
38°53′17″N 77°1′48″W / 38.88806°N 77.03000°W / 38.88806; -77.03000
Employees105,778 (June 2007)
Annual budgetUS$213 billion (2024)[1]
Agency executives
Websitewww.usda.gov

Approximately 71% of the USDA's $213 billion budget goes towards nutrition assistance programs administered by the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS). The largest component of the FNS budget is the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (formerly known as the 'Food Stamp' program), which is the cornerstone of USDA's nutrition assistance.[3] The United States Forest Service is the largest agency within the department, which administers national forests and national grasslands that together comprise about 25% of federal lands.

Overview edit

The USDA is divided into eight distinct mission areas, each of which have at least one agency dedicated to the theme of the mission area:

Farm Production and Conservation (FPAC)

Food, Nutrition, and Consumer Services (FNCS)

Food Safety (FS)

Marketing and Regulatory Programs (MRP)

Natural Resources and the Environment (NRE)

Research, Education, and Economics (REE)

Rural Development (RD)

Trade and Foreign Agriculture Affairs (TFAA)

[4]

Many of the programs concerned with the distribution of food and nutrition to people of the United States and providing nourishment as well as nutrition education to those in need are run by the Food and Nutrition Service. Activities in this program include the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, which provides healthy food to over 40 million low-income and homeless people each month.[5] USDA is a member of the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness,[6] where it is committed to working with other agencies to ensure these mainstream benefits have been accessed by those experiencing homelessness.

The USDA also is concerned with assisting farmers and food producers with the sale of crops and food on both the domestic and world markets. It plays a role in overseas aid programs by providing surplus foods to developing countries. This aid can go through USAID, foreign governments, international bodies such as World Food Program, or approved nonprofits. The Agricultural Act of 1949, section 416 (b) and Agricultural Trade Development and Assistance Act of 1954, also known as Food for Peace, provides the legal basis of such actions. The USDA is a partner of the World Cocoa Foundation.

History edit

Further information: History of agriculture in the United States
 
Harvey Washington Wiley, Chief Chemist of the Department of Agriculture's Division of Chemistry (third from the right) with his staff in 1883

The standard history is Gladys L. Baker, ed., Century of Service: The first 100 years of the United States Department of Agriculture (U.S. Department of Agriculture, 1963).[7]

Origins in the Patent Office edit

Early in its history, the American economy was largely agrarian. Officials in the federal government had long sought new and improved varieties of seeds, plants and animals for import into the United States. In 1829, by request of James Smithson out of a desire to further promulgate and diffuse scientific knowledge amongst the American people, the Smithsonian Institution was established, though it did not incorporate agriculture.[8] In 1837, Henry Leavitt Ellsworth became Commissioner of Patents in the Department of State. He began collecting and distributing new varieties of seeds and plants through members of the Congress and local agricultural societies. In 1839, Congress established the Agricultural Division within the Patent Office and allotted $1,000 for "the collection of agricultural statistics and other agricultural purposes."[9] Ellsworth's interest in aiding agriculture was evident in his annual reports that called for a public depository to preserve and distribute the various new seeds and plants, a clerk to collect agricultural statistics, the preparation of statewide reports about crops in different regions, and the application of chemistry to agriculture.[10] Ellsworth was called the "Father of the Department of Agriculture."[11]

In 1849, the Patent Office was transferred to the newly created Department of the Interior. In the ensuing years, agitation for a separate bureau within the department or a separate department devoted to agriculture kept recurring.[10]

History edit

 
The first Department of Agriculture Building on the National Mall around 1895
 
The Jamie L. Whitten Building in Washington D.C. is the current USDA headquarters.

On May 15, 1862, Abraham Lincoln established the independent Department of Agriculture through the Morrill Act to be headed by a commissioner without Cabinet status. Staffed by only eight employees, the department was charged with conducting research and development related to "agriculture, rural development, aquaculture and human nutrition in the most general and comprehensive sense of those terms".[12] Agriculturalist Isaac Newton was appointed to be the first commissioner.[13] Lincoln called it the "people's department", owing to the fact that over half of the nation at the time was directly or indirectly involved in agriculture or agribusiness.[14]

In 1868, the department moved into the new Department of Agriculture Building in Washington, designed by famed D.C. architect Adolf Cluss. Located on the National Mall between 12th Street and 14th SW, the department had offices for its staff and the entire width of the Mall up to B Street NW to plant and experiment with plants.[15]

In the 1880s, varied advocacy groups were lobbying for Cabinet representation. Business interests sought a Department of Commerce and Industry, and farmers tried to raise the Department of Agriculture to Cabinet rank. In 1887, the House of Representatives and Senate passed separate bills giving Cabinet status to the Department of Agriculture and Labor, but the bill was defeated in conference committee after farm interests objected to the addition of labor. Finally, in 1889 the Department of Agriculture was given cabinet-level status.[16]

In 1887, the Hatch Act provided for the federal funding of agricultural experiment stations in each state. The Smith-Lever Act of 1914 then funded cooperative extension services in each state to teach agriculture, home economics, and other subjects to the public. With these and similar provisions, the USDA reached out to every county of every state.[17]

New Deal era edit

By 1933 the department was well established in Washington and very well known in rural America. In the agricultural field the picture was different. Statisticians created a comprehensive data-gathering arm in the Division of Crop and Livestock Estimates. Secretary Henry Wallace, a statistician, further strengthened the expertise by introducing sampling techniques. Professional economists ran a strong Bureau of Agricultural Economics. Most important was the agricultural experiment station system, a network of state partners in the land-grant colleges, which in turn operated a large field service in direct contact with farmers in practically every rural county. The department worked smoothly with a nationwide, well-organized pressure group, the American Farm Bureau Federation. It represented the largest commercial growers before Congress.[18]

As late as the Great Depression, farm work occupied a fourth of Americans. Indeed, many young people who moved to the cities in the prosperous 1920s returned to the family farm after the depression caused unemployment after 1929. The USDA helped ensure that food continued to be produced and distributed to those who needed it, assisted with loans for small landowners, and provided technical advice. Its Bureau of Home Economics, established in 1923, published shopping advice and recipes to stretch family budgets and make food go farther.[19]

Modern times edit

It was revealed on August 27, 2018, that the U.S. Department of Agriculture would be providing U.S. farmers with a farm aid package, which will total $4.7 billion in direct payments to American farmers. This package is meant to offset the losses farmers are expected to incur from retaliatory tariffs placed on American exports during the Trump tariffs.[20]

On 7 February 2022, the USDA announced the Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities, a $1 billion program that will test and verify the benefits of climate-friendly agricultural practices.[21]

In October 2022, the USDA announced a $1.3 billion debt relief program for about 36,000 farmers who had fallen behind on loan payments or facing foreclosures. The provisions in the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 set aside $3.1 billion to help such farmers with high-risk operations caused by USDA-backed loans.[22]

Organization and Component Staff Level edit

USDA's offices and agencies are listed below, with full-time equivalent staff levels according to the estimated FY2023 appropriation, as reported in USDA's FY2024 Congressional Budget Justification.[1]

Component FTE
Staff Offices

Secretary of Agriculture

Office of Safety, Security and Protection 58
Agriculture Buildings and Facilities 63
Departmental Administration 342
Hazardous Materials Management 5
Office of Budget and Program Analysis 58
Office of Civil Rights 168
Office of Communications 57
Office of Ethics 28
Office of Hearings and Appeals 81
Office of Homeland Security 35
Office of Inspector General 430
Office of Partnerships and Public Engagement 51
Office of the Chief Economist 65
Office of the Chief Financial Officer 1,242
Office of the Chief Information Officer 1,658
Office of the General Counsel 294
Office of the Secretary 179
Farm Production and Conservation

Under Secretary for Farm Production and Conservation

Farm Service Agency 10,188
Risk Management Agency 410
Natural Resources Conservation Service 12,184
Farm Production and Conservation Business Center 1,683
Rural Development

Under Secretary for Rural Development

Rural Housing Service, Rural Business-Cooperative Service, Rural Utilities Service 4,700
Food, Nutrition, and Consumer Services

Under Secretary for Food, Nutrition, and Consumer Services

Food and Nutrition Service 1,905
Food Safety

Under Secretary for Food Safety

Food Safety and Inspection Service 8,780
Natural Resources and Environment

Under Secretary for Natural Resources and Environment

Forest Service 33,270
Marketing and Regulatory Programs

Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service 8,449
Agricultural Marketing Service 4,132
Research, Education, and Economics

Under Secretary for Research, Education, and Economics

Agricultural Research Service 6,169
National Institute of Food and Agriculture 393
Economic Research Service 329
National Agricultural Statistics Service 890
Under Secretary of Agriculture for Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs[23] Foreign Agricultural Service 841
Total 99,137
 
A nutrition researcher considers canned peas.

Inactive Departmental Services edit

Discrimination edit

 
Black farmers protested at Lafayette Park across from the White House, on September 22, 1997, against USDA.

Allegations have been made that throughout the agency's history its personnel have discriminated against farmers of various backgrounds, denying them loans and access to other programs well into the 1990s.[25] The effect of this discrimination caused a reduction in the number of African American farmers in the United States.[26] Though African American farmers have been the most hit by discriminatory actions by the USDA, women, Native Americans, Hispanics, and other minorities have experienced discrimination in a variety of forms at the hands of the USDA. The majority of these discriminatory actions have occurred through the Farm Service Agency, which oversees loan and assistance programs to farmers.[27]

In response to the Supreme Court's ruling of unconstitutionality of the Agricultural Adjustment Act, Congress enacted the Soil Conservation and Domestic Allotment Act of 1936, which established the Soil Conservation Service (SCS) which provided service to private landowners and encouraged subsidies that would relieve soil from excessive farming. The SCS in its early days were hesitant, especially in Southern jurisdictions, to hire Black conservationists. Rather than reaching out to Black students in universities for interviews and job opportunities, students had to reach out for the few opportunities granted to Black conservationists.[28]

As part of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, the USDA formally ended racial segregation among its staff.[29] In the 1999 Pigford v. Glickman class-action lawsuit brought by African American farmers, the USDA agreed to a billion-dollar settlement due to its patterns of discrimination in the granting of loans and subsidies to black farmers.[29] In 2011, a second round of payouts, Pigford II, was appropriated by Congress for $1.25 billion, although this payout, far too late to support the many who desperately needed financial assistance during 1999 lawsuit, only comes out to around $250,000 per farmer.[30]

A March 17, 2006 letter from the GAO about the Pigford Settlement indicated that "the court noted that USDA disbanded its Office of Civil Rights in 1983, and stopped responding to claims of discrimination."[31]

Pigford v. Glickman edit

Main article: Pigford v. Glickman

Following long-standing concerns, black farmers joined a class action discrimination suit against the USDA filed in federal court in 1997.[32] An attorney called it "the most organized, largest civil rights case in the history of the country."[33] Also in 1997, black farmers from at least five states held protests in front of the USDA headquarters in Washington, D.C.[34] Protests in front of the USDA were a strategy employed in later years as the black farmers sought to keep national attention focused on the plight of the black farmers. Representatives of the National Black Farmers Association met with President Bill Clinton and other administration officials at the White House. And NBFA's president testified before the United States House Committee on Agriculture.[35]

In Pigford v. Glickman, U.S. Federal District Court Judge Paul L. Friedman approved the settlement and consent decree on April 14, 1999.[32] The settlement recognized discrimination against 22,363 black farmers, but the NBFA would later call the agreement incomplete because more than 70,000 were excluded.[36] Nevertheless, the settlement was deemed to be the largest-ever civil rights class action settlement in American history. Lawyers estimated the value of the settlement to be more than $2 billion.[37] Some farmers would have their debts forgiven.[38] Judge Friedman appointed a monitor to oversee the settlement.[37] Farmers in Alabama, Mississippi, Arkansas, and Georgia were among those affected by the settlement.[39]

The NBFA's president was invited to testify before congress on this matter numerous times following the settlement, including before the United States Senate Committee on Agriculture on September 12, 2000, when he testified that many farmers had not yet received payments and others were left out of the settlement. It was later revealed that one DoJ staff "general attorney" was unlicensed while she was handling black farmers' cases.[40] NBFA called for all those cases to be reheard.[41] The Chicago Tribune reported in 2004 that the result of such longstanding USDA discrimination was that black farmers had been forced out of business at a rate three times faster than white farmers. In 1920, 1 in 7 U.S. farmers was African-American, and by 2004 the number was 1 in 100. USDA spokesman Ed Loyd, when acknowledging that the USDA loan process was unfair to minority farmers, had claimed it was hard to determine the effect on such farmers.[42]

In 2006 the Government Accountability Office (GAO) issued a report highly critical of the USDA in its handling of the black farmers cases.[43] NBFA continued to lobby Congress to provide relief. NBFA's John Boyd (farmer) secured congressional support for legislation that would provide $100 million in funds to settle late-filer cases. In 2006 a bill was introduced into the House of Representatives and later the Senate by Senator George Felix Allen.[44] In 2007 Boyd testified before the United States House Committee on the Judiciary about this legislation.[45] As the organization was making headway by gathering Congressional supporters in 2007 it was revealed that some USDA Farm Services Agency employees were engaged in activities aimed at blocking Congressional legislation that would aid the black farmers.[46] Barack Obama, then a U.S. Senator, lent his support to the black farmers' issues in 2007.[47] A bill co-sponsored by Obama passed the Senate in 2007.[48]

In early June 2008 hundreds of black farmers, denied a chance to have their cases heard in the Pigford settlement, filed a new lawsuit against USDA.[49] The Senate and House versions of the black farmers bill, reopening black farmers discrimination cases, became law in June 2008.[50] Some news reports said that the new law could affect up to 74,000 black farmers.[51] In October 2008, the GAO issued a report criticizing the USDA's handling of discrimination complaints.[52] The GAO recommended an oversight review board to examine civil rights complaints.[53]

After numerous public rallies and an intensive NBFA member lobbying effort, Congress approved and Obama signed into law in December 2010 legislation that set aside $1.15 billion to resolve the outstanding black farmers' cases. NBFA's John W. Boyd Jr., attended the bill-signing ceremony at the White House.[45] As of 2013, 90,000 African-American, Hispanic, female and Native American farmers had filed claims. It was reported that some had been found fraudulent, or transparently bogus. In Maple Hill, North Carolina by 2013, the number of successful claimants was four times the number of farms with 1 out of 9 African-Americans being paid, while "claimants were not required [by the USDA] to present documentary evidence that they had been unfairly treated or had even tried to farm." Lack of documentation is an issue complicated by the USDA practice of discarding denied applications after three years.[54]

Keepseagle v. Vilsack edit

In 1999, Native American farmers, discriminated in a similar fashion to black farmers, filed a class-action lawsuit against the USDA alleging loan discrimination under the ECOA and the APA. This case relied heavily on its predecessor, Pigford v. Glickman, in terms of the reasoning it set forth in the lawsuit.[27] Eventually, a settlement was reached between the plaintiffs and the USDA to the amount of up to $760 million, awardable through individual damages claims.[55] These claims could be used for monetary relief, debt relief, and/or tax relief. The filing period began June 29, 2011 and lasted 180 days.[56] Track A claimants would be eligible for up to $50,000, whereas Track B claimants would be eligible for up to $250,000 with a higher standard of proof.[56]

Garcia v. Vilsack edit

Main article: Garcia v. Vilsack

In 2000, similar to Pigford v. Glickman, a class-action lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on behalf of Hispanic farmers alleging that the USDA discriminated against them in terms of credit transactions and disaster benefits, in direct violation of ECOA. As per the settlement, $1.33 billion is available for compensation in awards of up to $50,000 or $250,000, while an additional $160 million is available in debt relief.[27]

Love v. Vilsack edit

Main article: Love v. Vilsack

In 2001, similar to Garcia v. Vilsack, a class-action lawsuit was filed in the same court alleging discrimination on the basis of gender. A Congressional response to the lawsuit resulted in the passing of the Equality for Women Farmers Act, which created a system that would allow for allegations of gender discrimination to be heard against the USDA and enable claims for damages.[27]

Environmental justice initiatives edit

In their 2012 environmental justice strategy, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) stated an ongoing desire to integrate environmental justice into its core mission and operations. In 2011, Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack emphasized the USDA's focus on EJ in rural communities around the United States, as well as connecting with Indigenous Tribes and ensuring they understand and receive their environmental rights. USDA does fund programs with social and environmental equity goals; however, it has no staff dedicated solely to EJ.

Background edit

On February 16, 1994, President Clinton issued Executive Order 12898, "Federal Actions to Address Environmental Justice in Minority Populations and Low-Income Populations." Executive Order 12898 requires that achieving EJ must be part of each federal agency's mission. Under Executive Order 12898 federal agencies must:

  1. enforce all health and environmental statutes in areas with minority and low-income populations;
  2. ensure public participation;
  3. improve research and data collection relating to the health and environment of minority and low-income populations; and
  4. identify differential patterns of consumption of natural resources among minority and low-income populations.

The Executive Order also created an Interagency Working Group (IWG) consisting of 11 heads of departments and agencies.[57]

2012 Environmental Justice Strategy edit

On February 7, 2012, the USDA released a final Environmental Justice Strategic Plan identifying new and updated goals and performance measures beyond what USDA identified in a 1995 EJ strategy that was adopted in response to E.O. 12898.[58] Generally, USDA believes its existing technical and financial assistance programs provide solutions to environmental inequity, such as its initiatives on education, food deserts, and economic development in impacted communities.

Natural Resources and Environment Under Secretary Harris Sherman is the political appointee generally responsible for USDA's EJ strategy, with Patrick Holmes, a senior staffer to the Under Secretary, playing a coordinating role. USDA has no staff dedicated solely to EJ.[59]

EJ Initiatives in Tribal Communities edit

Tribal development edit

USDA has had a role in implementing Michelle Obama's Let's Move campaign in tribal areas by increasing Bureau of Indian Education schools' participation in federal nutrition programs, by developing community gardens on tribal lands, and developing tribal food policy councils.[60]

More than $6.2 billion in Rural Development funding has been allocated for community infrastructure in Indian country and is distributed via 47 state offices that altogether cover the entire continental United States, Hawaii, and Alaska.[59] Such funding has been used for a variety of reasons:

Rural housing edit
  • single-family housing direct loans
  • loan guarantees loans for very-low-income homeowners
  • financing for affordable rental housing
  • financing for farm laborers and their families
Community facilities edit
  • child and senior care centers
  • emergency services
  • healthcare institutions
  • educational institutions
  • tribal administration buildings
Business and cooperative programs edit
  • increased access to broadband connections
  • tribal workplace development and employment opportunities
  • sustainable renewable energy development
  • regional food systems
  • financing and technical assistance for entrepreneurs, including loans and lending
  • increased access to capital through Tribal CDFIs
Utilities edit
  • increased access to 21st century telecommunications services
  • reliable and affordable water and wastewater systems
  • financing electric systems
  • integrating electric smart-grid technologies[61]

Tribal relations edit

In 1997, the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) published a resource guide aimed at helping USFS officials with developing and maintaining relations with different tribal governments. To that end, and in coordination with the Forest Service's 4*point American Indian/Alaska Native policy, the resource guide discusses how to:

  1. Maintain a governmental relationship with Federally Recognized tribal governments.
  2. Implement Forest Service programs and activities honoring Indian treaty rights, and fulfill legally mandated trust responsibilities to the extent that they are determine applicable to National Forest System lands.
  3. Administer programs and activities to address and be sensitive to traditional Native religious beliefs and practices.
  4. Provide research, transfer of technology, and technical assistance to Indian governments.[62]

The USFS works to maintain good governmental relationships through regular intergovernmental meetings, acknowledgement of pre*existing tribal sovereignty, and a better general understanding of tribal government, which varies from tribe to tribe. Indian treaty rights and trust responsibilities are honored through visits to tribal neighbors, discussions of mutual interest, and attempts to honor and accommodate the legal positions of Indians and the federal government. Addressing and demonstrating sensitivity to Native religious beliefs and practices includes walking through Native lands and acknowledging cultural needs when implementing USFS activities. Providing research, technology, and assistance to Indian governments is shown through collaboration of ecological studies and sharing of various environmental technologies, as well as the inclusion of traditional Native practices in contemporary operations of the USFS.[62]

The Intertribal Technical Assistance Network works to improve access of tribal governments, communities and individuals to USDA technical assistance programs.[63]

Tribal Services/Cooperatives edit

The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service provides APHIS Veterinary Services, which serve the tribal community by promoting and fostering safe animal trade and care. This includes prevention of pests and disease from herd and fisheries as well as surveys for diseases on or near Native American lands that can affect traditionally hunted wildlife.[64][full citation needed] The APHIS also provides Wildlife Services, which help with wildlife damage on Native lands. This includes emergency trainings, outreach, consultation, internship opportunities for students, and general education on damage reduction, livestock protection, and disease monitoring.[65][full citation needed]

Meanwhile, the Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) is exploring a program to use meat from bisons raised on tribal land to supply AMS food distribution programs to tribes.[59]

Other EJ Initiatives edit

Technical and financial assistance edit

The NRCS Strike Force Initiative has identified impoverished counties in Mississippi, Georgia and Arkansas to receive increased outreach and training regarding USDA assistance programs. USDA credits this increased outreach with generating a 196 percent increase in contracts, representing more than 250,000 acres of farmland, in its Environmental Quality Incentives Program.[63] In 2001, NRCS funded and published a study, "Environmental Justice: Perceptions of Issues, Awareness and Assistance," focused on rural, Southern "Black Belt" counties and analyzing how the NRCS workforce could more effectively integrate environmental justice into impacted communities.[66]

The Farm Services Agency in 2011 devoted $100,000 of its Socially Disadvantaged Farmers and Ranchers program budget to improving its outreach to counties with persistent poverty.[67] USDA's Risk Management Agency has initiated education and outreach to low-income farmers regarding use of biological controls, rather than pesticides, for pest control.[59] The Rural Utilities Service administers water and wastewater loans, including SEARCH Grants that are targeted to financially distressed, small rural communities and other opportunities specifically for Alaskan Native villages.[68][69]

Mapping edit

USFS has established several Urban Field Stations, to research urban natural resources' structure, function, stewardship, and benefits.[70] By mapping urban tree coverage, the agency hopes to identify and prioritize EJ communities for urban forest projects.[70]

Another initiative highlighted by the agency is the Food and Nutrition Service and Economic Research Service's Food Desert Locator.[71] The Locator provides a spatial view of food deserts, defined as a low-income census tract where a substantial number or share of residents has low access to a supermarket or large grocery store. The mapped deserts can be used to direct agency resources to increase access to fresh fruits and vegetables and other food assistance programs.[72]

Other edit

Private sector relationships edit

USDA formalized a relationship with the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) in 2018. GFSI is a private organization where members of the Consumer Goods Forum have control over benchmarking requirements in recognition of private standards for food safety. In August 2018, USDA achieved Technical Equivalence against Version 7.1 of the GFSI Benchmarking Requirements for their Harmonized GAP Plus + certification programme,[73] where Technical Equivalence is limited to government-owned food safety certification programmes. This is misaligned with U.S. Government Policy and OMB Circular No. A-119[74] which instructs its agencies to adopt voluntary consensus standards before relying upon industry standards (private standards) or developing government standards.

Harmonized GAP Plus+ Standard (V. 3.0) was published in February 2021[75] with reference to GFSI Guidance Document Version 2020, Part III, ignoring reference to international standards and technical specifications ISO 22000 and ISO T/S 22002-3 Prerequisite Programmes for Farming. The USDA exception to OMB Circular No. A-119 might be attributed to lobbying and influence of Consumer Goods Forum members in Washington, D.C.[76] In November 2021, GFSI announced its Technical Equivalence was under strategic review explaining the assessment has raised concerns across many stakeholders.[77]

COVID-19 relief edit

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Congress allocated funding to the USDA to address the disturbances rippling through the agricultural sector. On April 17, 2020, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program:[78]

The American food supply chain had to adapt, and it remains safe, secure, and strong, and we all know that starts with America's farmers and ranchers. This program will not only provide immediate relief for our farmers and ranchers, but it will also allow for the purchase and distribution of our agricultural abundance to help our fellow Americans in need.

This provided $16 billion for farmers and ranchers, and $3 billion to purchase surplus produce, dairy, and meat from farmers for distribution to charitable organizations.[79] As part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES) and the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA), USDA has up to an additional $873.3 million available in Section 32 funding to purchase a variety of agricultural products for distribution to food banks, $850 million for food bank administrative costs and USDA food purchases.[79]

Related legislation edit

Important legislation setting policy of the USDA includes the:[80]

Images edit

See also edit

Notes and references edit

  1. ^ a b "United States Department of Agriculture FY 2024 Budget Summary" (PDF). U.S. Department of Agriculture. Retrieved August 5, 2023.
  2. ^ Good, Keith (February 24, 2021). . Farm Policy News. Archived from the original on February 19, 2022. Retrieved October 1, 2021.
  3. ^ (PDF). usda.gov. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 12, 2016. Retrieved July 1, 2016.
  4. ^ "USDA Agencies". USDA.
  5. ^ "FNS Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)". June 21, 2013. Retrieved December 29, 2013.
  6. ^ . USICH. Archived from the original on April 24, 2012.
  7. ^ It is not copyright and is online here for free download..
  8. ^ "Agricultural Research Service" (PDF). USDA. Retrieved November 1, 2017.
  9. ^ History of Human Nutrition Research in the U. S. Department of Agriculture. Government Printing Office. ISBN 978-0-16-094384-3.
  10. ^ a b Preliminary Inventory, Issues 187-195. National Archives publication, 1977. Page 7.
  11. ^ "Ellsworth, Henry Leavitt, 1791–1858 – Social Networks and Archival Context". snaccooperative.org. Retrieved September 19, 2020.
  12. ^ "7 U.S. Code § 2201 - Establishment of Department". LII / Legal Information Institute. Retrieved February 7, 2024.
  13. ^ 12 Stat. 387, now codified at 7 U.S.C. § 2201.
  14. ^ Salvador, Ricardo; Bittman, Mark (December 4, 2020). "Opinion: Goodbye, U.S.D.A., Hello, Department of Food and Well-Being". The New York Times. Retrieved December 10, 2020.
  15. ^ Evening Star – June 18, 1868 – page 4 – column 4
  16. ^ 25 Stat 659 (February 9, 1889)
  17. ^ Danbom, David B. (1986). "The Agricultural Experiment Station and Professionalization: Scientists' Goals for Agriculture". Agricultural History. 60 (2): 246–255. JSTOR 3743443.
  18. ^ David M. Kennedy, Freedom from fear: The American people in depression and war, 1929–1945 (1999). p 203.
  19. ^ Ziegelman, Jane; Coe, Andrew (2016). A Square Meal: A Culinary History of the Great Depression. HarperCollins. ISBN 978-0-06-221641-0.
  20. ^ "Agriculture Department Will Pay $4.7 Billion To Farmers Hit In Trade War". npr. Retrieved March 27, 2023.
  21. ^ Erickson, Britt. "USDA commits $1 billion to climate-smart agriculture". Chemical & Engineering News.
  22. ^ Pitt, David (October 18, 2022). "USDA announces $1 billion debt relief for 36,000 farmers". Associated Press.
  23. ^ "Secretary Perdue Announces Creation of Undersecretary for Trade". Retrieved June 16, 2018.
  24. ^ a b "Records of the Bureau of Plant Industry, Soils, and Agricultural Engineering [BPISAE]: Administrative History". Archives.gov. Retrieved December 29, 2013.
  25. ^ (PDF). General Accounting Office. January 1999. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 24, 2009. Retrieved October 16, 2007.
  26. ^ Brooks, Roy L. (2004). Atonement and Forgiveness: A New Model for Black Reparations. University of California Press. pp. 7–8. ISBN 0-520-24813-9.
  27. ^ a b c d Garcia v. Vilsack: A Policy and Legal Analysis of a USDA Discrimination Case. , . HeinOnline, https://heinonline-org.ezproxy1.lib.asu.edu/HOL/P?h=hein.crs/crsmthmatal0001&i=11.
  28. ^ Helms, Douglas. "Eroding the Color Line: The Soil Conservation Service and the Civil Rights Act of 1964." Agricultural History, vol. 65, no. 2, Agricultural History Society, 1991, pp. 35–53, http://www.jstor.org/stable/3743706.
  29. ^ a b Johnson, Kimberley S. (October 2011). "Racial Orders, Congress, and the Agricultural Welfare State, 1865–1940". Studies in American Political Development. 25 (2): 143–161. doi:10.1017/S0898588X11000095.
  30. ^ "United States: Black US Farmers Awaiting Billions in Promised Debt Relief". Asia News Monitor. Bangkok. September 3, 2021. ProQuest 2568289864.
  31. ^ "GAO-06-469R Pigford Settlement: The Role of the Court-Appointed Monitor" (PDF). Retrieved March 2, 2022.
  32. ^ a b Tadlock Cowan; Jody Feder (June 14, 2011). "The Pigford Cases: USDA Settlement of Discrimination Suits by Black Farmers" (PDF). Congressional Research Service. Retrieved December 1, 2011.
  33. ^ "PBS The News Hour (1999)". PBS. Retrieved December 29, 2013.
  34. ^ Charlene Gilbert; Quinn Eli (2002). Homecoming: The Story of African-American Farmers. Beacon Press. ISBN 978-0-8070-0963-5. Retrieved December 29, 2013.
  35. ^ Treatment of minority and limited resource producers by the U.S. Department of Agriculture: ... U.S. G.P.O. January 1, 1997. ISBN 978-0-16-055410-0. Retrieved December 29, 2013.
  36. ^ M. Susan Orr Klopfer; Fred Klopfer; Barry Klopfer (2005). Where Rebels Roost... Mississippi Civil Rights Revisited. Lulu Press. ISBN 978-1-4116-4102-0. Retrieved December 29, 2013.[self-published source?]
  37. ^ a b "Judge Approves Settlement for Black Farmers". New York Times. ASSOCIATED PRESS. April 15, 1999. Retrieved December 29, 2013.
  38. ^ "Black Farmers Lawsuit". NPR. March 2, 1999. Retrieved December 29, 2013.
  39. ^ "Southern farmers among those affected by court case". Archived from the original on July 11, 2012.
  40. ^ Daniel Pulliam (February 11, 2005). . GOVEXEC.com. Archived from the original on April 16, 2005.
  41. ^ "ABOUT US". nbfa. Retrieved August 6, 2020.
  42. ^ Martin, Andrew (August 8, 2004). "USDA discrimination accused of withering black farmers". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved December 29, 2013.
  43. ^ "Black Farmers Follow Up on USDA Grievances". National Public Radio. April 25, 2006. Retrieved December 29, 2013.
  44. ^ "Allen Unveils Bill to Help Black Farmers". The Washington Post. Associated Press. September 29, 2006. Retrieved December 29, 2013.
  45. ^ a b ""NATIONAL BLACK FARMERS ASSOCIATION"". www.nationalblackfarmersassociation.org. Retrieved March 27, 2023.
  46. ^ . August 8, 2007. Archived from the original on November 11, 2008.
  47. ^ "The Hill newspaper (2007)". Thehill.com. Retrieved December 29, 2013.
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  49. ^ Ben Evans (June 4, 2008). "Black farmers file new suit against USDA". FOXNews.com. Associated Press. Retrieved December 29, 2013.
  50. ^ Ben Evans (June 28, 2008). "Reopening black farmers' suits could cost billions". USA Today. Associated Press. Retrieved December 29, 2013.
  51. ^ "Help Ahead for Black Farmers". NPR. December 31, 2007. Retrieved December 29, 2013.
  52. ^ Etter, Lauren (October 23, 2008). . The Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on June 26, 2013. Retrieved December 29, 2013.
  53. ^ Fears, Darryl (October 23, 2008). "USDA Action On Bias Complaints Is Criticized". The Washington Post. Retrieved December 29, 2013.
  54. ^ Sharon LaFraniere (April 25, 2013). "U.S. Opens Spigot After Farmers Claim Discrimination". The New York Times. Retrieved April 26, 2013. ...claimants were not required to present documentary evidence that they had been unfairly treated or had even tried to farm.
  55. ^ . Natural Resources Conservation Service Louisiana. Archived from the original on May 25, 2020.
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Further reading edit

  • Baker, Gladys L. ed. Century of service: the first 100 years of the United States Department of Agriculture (US Department of Agriculture, 1963), the standard history; online.
  • Benedict, Murray R. (1950). "The Trend in American Agricultural Policy 1920–1949". Zeitschrift für die gesamte Staatswissenschaft. 106 (1): 97–122. JSTOR 40747300.
  • Benedict, Murray R. Farm policies of the United States, 1790–1950: a study of their origins and development (1966) 546pp online; also another copy
  • Cochrane, Willard W. The Development of American Agriculture: A Historical Analysis (2nd ed. U of Minnesota Press, 1993) 512pp.
  • Cochrane, Willard W. and Mary Ellen Ryan. American Farm Policy: 1948–1973 (U of Minnesota Press, 1976).
  • CQ. Congress and the Nation (1965–2021), highly detailed coverage of each presidency since Truman; extensive coverage of agricultural policies. online free to borrow
  • Coppess, Jonathan (2018). The Fault Lines of Farm Policy: A Legislative and Political History of the Farm Bill. U of Nebraska Press. ISBN 978-1-4962-0512-4.
  • Gardner, Bruce L. (1996). "The Federal Government in Farm Commodity Markets: Recent Reform Efforts in a Long-Term Context". Agricultural History. 70 (2): 177–195. JSTOR 3744532.
  • Griesbach, Rob (2010). "BARC History: Bureau of Plant Industry" (PDF).
  • Matusow, Allen J. Farm policies and politics in the Truman years (1967) online
  • Orden, David; Zulauf, Carl (October 2015). "Political Economy of the 2014 Farm Bill". American Journal of Agricultural Economics. 97 (5): 1298–1311. doi:10.1093/ajae/aav028. hdl:10919/96941.
  • Sumner, Daniel A. "Farm Subsidy Tradition and Modern Agricultural Realities" (PDF). University of California Agricultural Issues Center. CiteSeerX 10.1.1.411.284.
  • Winters, Donald L. Henry Cantwell Wallace as Secretary of Agriculture, 1921–1924 (1970)
  • Zulauf, Carl; Orden, David (2016). "80 Years of Farm Bills—Evolutionary Reform" (PDF). Choices. 31 (4): 1–2. JSTOR choices.31.4.16.

Historiography edit

  • Zobbe, Henrik. "On the foundation of agricultural policy research in the United States." (Dept. of Agricultural Economics Staff Paper 02–08, Purdue University, 2002) online

Primary sources edit

  • Rasmussen, Wayne D., ed. Agriculture in the United States: a documentary history (4 vol, Random House, 1975) 3661pp. vol 4 online

External links edit

  • Official website  
  • Department of Agriculture on USAspending.gov
  • Department of Agriculture in the Federal Register
  • National Archives document of the USDA's origins
  • Works by or about United States Department of Agriculture at Internet Archive (historic archives)
  • Historic technical reports from USDA (and other federal agencies) are available in the Technical Report Archive and Image Library (TRAIL)
  • USA: USDA Issues grants to support for robotics research
  • (archived 10 October 2007)
  • Works by United States Department of Agriculture at LibriVox (public domain audiobooks)  
 
Wikimedia Commons has media related to United States Department of Agriculture.
 
Scholia has an organization profile for United States Department of Agriculture.

February 16, 2024
united, states, department, agriculture, usda, redirects, here, other, uses, usda, disambiguation, confused, with, usda, executive, department, united, states, federal, government, that, aims, meet, needs, commercial, farming, livestock, food, production, prom. USDA redirects here For other uses see USDA disambiguation Not to be confused with FDA The United States Department of Agriculture USDA is an executive department of the United States federal government that aims to meet the needs of commercial farming and livestock food production promotes agricultural trade and production works to assure food safety protects natural resources fosters rural communities and works to end hunger in the United States and internationally It is headed by the secretary of agriculture who reports directly to the president of the United States and is a member of the president s Cabinet The current secretary is Tom Vilsack who has served since February 24 2021 2 United StatesDepartment of AgricultureSeal of the USDALogo of the USDAFlag of the USDAAgency overviewFormedMay 15 1862 161 years ago 1862 05 15 Cabinet status February 15 1889Preceding agencyAgricultural DivisionJurisdictionU S federal governmentHeadquartersJamie L Whitten Building1301 Independence Avenue S W Washington D C 38 53 17 N 77 1 48 W 38 88806 N 77 03000 W 38 88806 77 03000Employees105 778 June 2007 Annual budgetUS 213 billion 2024 1 Agency executivesTom Vilsack SecretaryXochitl Torres Small Deputy SecretaryWebsitewww wbr usda wbr govApproximately 71 of the USDA s 213 billion budget goes towards nutrition assistance programs administered by the Food and Nutrition Service FNS The largest component of the FNS budget is the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program formerly known as the Food Stamp program which is the cornerstone of USDA s nutrition assistance 3 The United States Forest Service is the largest agency within the department which administers national forests and national grasslands that together comprise about 25 of federal lands Contents 1 Overview 2 History 2 1 Origins in the Patent Office 2 2 History 2 3 New Deal era 2 4 Modern times 3 Organization and Component Staff Level 3 1 Inactive Departmental Services 4 Discrimination 4 1 Pigford v Glickman 4 2 Keepseagle v Vilsack 4 3 Garcia v Vilsack 4 4 Love v Vilsack 5 Environmental justice initiatives 5 1 Background 5 1 1 2012 Environmental Justice Strategy 5 2 EJ Initiatives in Tribal Communities 5 2 1 Tribal development 5 2 1 1 Rural housing 5 2 1 2 Community facilities 5 2 1 3 Business and cooperative programs 5 2 1 4 Utilities 5 2 2 Tribal relations 5 2 3 Tribal Services Cooperatives 5 3 Other EJ Initiatives 5 3 1 Technical and financial assistance 5 3 2 Mapping 6 Other 6 1 Private sector relationships 6 2 COVID 19 relief 7 Related legislation 8 Images 9 See also 10 Notes and references 11 Further reading 11 1 Historiography 11 2 Primary sources 12 External linksOverview editThe USDA is divided into eight distinct mission areas each of which have at least one agency dedicated to the theme of the mission area Farm Production and Conservation FPAC FPAC Business Center Natural Resources Conservation Service NRCS Risk Management Agency RMA Farm Service Agency FSA Food Nutrition and Consumer Services FNCS Food and Nutrition Service FNS Food Safety FS Food Safety and Inspection Service FSIS Marketing and Regulatory Programs MRP Agricultural Marketing Service AMS Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service APHIS Natural Resources and the Environment NRE Forest Service FS Research Education and Economics REE National Agricultural Statistics Service NASS National Institute of Food and Agriculture NIFA Agricultural Research Service ARS Economic Research Service ERS Rural Development RD Rural Utilities Service RUS Rural Housing Service RHS Rural Business Cooperative Service RBS Trade and Foreign Agriculture Affairs TFAA Foreign Agricultural Service FAS 4 Many of the programs concerned with the distribution of food and nutrition to people of the United States and providing nourishment as well as nutrition education to those in need are run by the Food and Nutrition Service Activities in this program include the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program which provides healthy food to over 40 million low income and homeless people each month 5 USDA is a member of the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness 6 where it is committed to working with other agencies to ensure these mainstream benefits have been accessed by those experiencing homelessness The USDA also is concerned with assisting farmers and food producers with the sale of crops and food on both the domestic and world markets It plays a role in overseas aid programs by providing surplus foods to developing countries This aid can go through USAID foreign governments international bodies such as World Food Program or approved nonprofits The Agricultural Act of 1949 section 416 b and Agricultural Trade Development and Assistance Act of 1954 also known as Food for Peace provides the legal basis of such actions The USDA is a partner of the World Cocoa Foundation History editFurther information History of agriculture in the United States nbsp Harvey Washington Wiley Chief Chemist of the Department of Agriculture s Division of Chemistry third from the right with his staff in 1883The standard history is Gladys L Baker ed Century of Service The first 100 years of the United States Department of Agriculture U S Department of Agriculture 1963 7 Origins in the Patent Office edit Early in its history the American economy was largely agrarian Officials in the federal government had long sought new and improved varieties of seeds plants and animals for import into the United States In 1829 by request of James Smithson out of a desire to further promulgate and diffuse scientific knowledge amongst the American people the Smithsonian Institution was established though it did not incorporate agriculture 8 In 1837 Henry Leavitt Ellsworth became Commissioner of Patents in the Department of State He began collecting and distributing new varieties of seeds and plants through members of the Congress and local agricultural societies In 1839 Congress established the Agricultural Division within the Patent Office and allotted 1 000 for the collection of agricultural statistics and other agricultural purposes 9 Ellsworth s interest in aiding agriculture was evident in his annual reports that called for a public depository to preserve and distribute the various new seeds and plants a clerk to collect agricultural statistics the preparation of statewide reports about crops in different regions and the application of chemistry to agriculture 10 Ellsworth was called the Father of the Department of Agriculture 11 In 1849 the Patent Office was transferred to the newly created Department of the Interior In the ensuing years agitation for a separate bureau within the department or a separate department devoted to agriculture kept recurring 10 History edit nbsp The first Department of Agriculture Building on the National Mall around 1895 nbsp The Jamie L Whitten Building in Washington D C is the current USDA headquarters On May 15 1862 Abraham Lincoln established the independent Department of Agriculture through the Morrill Act to be headed by a commissioner without Cabinet status Staffed by only eight employees the department was charged with conducting research and development related to agriculture rural development aquaculture and human nutrition in the most general and comprehensive sense of those terms 12 Agriculturalist Isaac Newton was appointed to be the first commissioner 13 Lincoln called it the people s department owing to the fact that over half of the nation at the time was directly or indirectly involved in agriculture or agribusiness 14 In 1868 the department moved into the new Department of Agriculture Building in Washington designed by famed D C architect Adolf Cluss Located on the National Mall between 12th Street and 14th SW the department had offices for its staff and the entire width of the Mall up to B Street NW to plant and experiment with plants 15 In the 1880s varied advocacy groups were lobbying for Cabinet representation Business interests sought a Department of Commerce and Industry and farmers tried to raise the Department of Agriculture to Cabinet rank In 1887 the House of Representatives and Senate passed separate bills giving Cabinet status to the Department of Agriculture and Labor but the bill was defeated in conference committee after farm interests objected to the addition of labor Finally in 1889 the Department of Agriculture was given cabinet level status 16 In 1887 the Hatch Act provided for the federal funding of agricultural experiment stations in each state The Smith Lever Act of 1914 then funded cooperative extension services in each state to teach agriculture home economics and other subjects to the public With these and similar provisions the USDA reached out to every county of every state 17 New Deal era edit By 1933 the department was well established in Washington and very well known in rural America In the agricultural field the picture was different Statisticians created a comprehensive data gathering arm in the Division of Crop and Livestock Estimates Secretary Henry Wallace a statistician further strengthened the expertise by introducing sampling techniques Professional economists ran a strong Bureau of Agricultural Economics Most important was the agricultural experiment station system a network of state partners in the land grant colleges which in turn operated a large field service in direct contact with farmers in practically every rural county The department worked smoothly with a nationwide well organized pressure group the American Farm Bureau Federation It represented the largest commercial growers before Congress 18 As late as the Great Depression farm work occupied a fourth of Americans Indeed many young people who moved to the cities in the prosperous 1920s returned to the family farm after the depression caused unemployment after 1929 The USDA helped ensure that food continued to be produced and distributed to those who needed it assisted with loans for small landowners and provided technical advice Its Bureau of Home Economics established in 1923 published shopping advice and recipes to stretch family budgets and make food go farther 19 Modern times edit It was revealed on August 27 2018 that the U S Department of Agriculture would be providing U S farmers with a farm aid package which will total 4 7 billion in direct payments to American farmers This package is meant to offset the losses farmers are expected to incur from retaliatory tariffs placed on American exports during the Trump tariffs 20 On 7 February 2022 the USDA announced the Partnerships for Climate Smart Commodities a 1 billion program that will test and verify the benefits of climate friendly agricultural practices 21 In October 2022 the USDA announced a 1 3 billion debt relief program for about 36 000 farmers who had fallen behind on loan payments or facing foreclosures The provisions in the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 set aside 3 1 billion to help such farmers with high risk operations caused by USDA backed loans 22 Organization and Component Staff Level editUSDA s offices and agencies are listed below with full time equivalent staff levels according to the estimated FY2023 appropriation as reported in USDA s FY2024 Congressional Budget Justification 1 Component FTEStaff Offices Secretary of Agriculture Office of Safety Security and Protection 58Agriculture Buildings and Facilities 63Departmental Administration 342Hazardous Materials Management 5Office of Budget and Program Analysis 58Office of Civil Rights 168Office of Communications 57Office of Ethics 28Office of Hearings and Appeals 81Office of Homeland Security 35Office of Inspector General 430Office of Partnerships and Public Engagement 51Office of the Chief Economist 65Office of the Chief Financial Officer 1 242Office of the Chief Information Officer 1 658Office of the General Counsel 294Office of the Secretary 179Farm Production and Conservation Under Secretary for Farm Production and Conservation Farm Service Agency Commodity Credit Corporation 10 188Risk Management Agency Federal Crop Insurance Corporation 410Natural Resources Conservation Service 12 184Farm Production and Conservation Business Center 1 683Rural Development Under Secretary for Rural Development Rural Housing Service Rural Business Cooperative Service Rural Utilities Service 4 700Food Nutrition and Consumer Services Under Secretary for Food Nutrition and Consumer Services Food and Nutrition Service 1 905Food Safety Under Secretary for Food Safety Food Safety and Inspection Service 8 780Natural Resources and Environment Under Secretary for Natural Resources and Environment Forest Service 33 270Marketing and Regulatory Programs Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service 8 449Agricultural Marketing Service 4 132Research Education and Economics Under Secretary for Research Education and Economics Agricultural Research Service 6 169National Institute of Food and Agriculture 393Economic Research Service 329National Agricultural Statistics Service 890Under Secretary of Agriculture for Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs 23 Foreign Agricultural Service 841Total 99 137 nbsp A nutrition researcher considers canned peas Inactive Departmental Services edit Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation Service ASCS became part of the Farm Service Agency in 1994 Animal Damage Control renamed Wildlife Services Soil Conservation Service SCS renamed Natural Resources Conservation Service Section of Vegetable Pathology Division of Botany 1887 90 24 Renamed Division of Vegetable Pathology 1890 95 24 Discrimination edit nbsp Black farmers protested at Lafayette Park across from the White House on September 22 1997 against USDA Allegations have been made that throughout the agency s history its personnel have discriminated against farmers of various backgrounds denying them loans and access to other programs well into the 1990s 25 The effect of this discrimination caused a reduction in the number of African American farmers in the United States 26 Though African American farmers have been the most hit by discriminatory actions by the USDA women Native Americans Hispanics and other minorities have experienced discrimination in a variety of forms at the hands of the USDA The majority of these discriminatory actions have occurred through the Farm Service Agency which oversees loan and assistance programs to farmers 27 In response to the Supreme Court s ruling of unconstitutionality of the Agricultural Adjustment Act Congress enacted the Soil Conservation and Domestic Allotment Act of 1936 which established the Soil Conservation Service SCS which provided service to private landowners and encouraged subsidies that would relieve soil from excessive farming The SCS in its early days were hesitant especially in Southern jurisdictions to hire Black conservationists Rather than reaching out to Black students in universities for interviews and job opportunities students had to reach out for the few opportunities granted to Black conservationists 28 As part of the 1964 Civil Rights Act the USDA formally ended racial segregation among its staff 29 In the 1999 Pigford v Glickman class action lawsuit brought by African American farmers the USDA agreed to a billion dollar settlement due to its patterns of discrimination in the granting of loans and subsidies to black farmers 29 In 2011 a second round of payouts Pigford II was appropriated by Congress for 1 25 billion although this payout far too late to support the many who desperately needed financial assistance during 1999 lawsuit only comes out to around 250 000 per farmer 30 A March 17 2006 letter from the GAO about the Pigford Settlement indicated that the court noted that USDA disbanded its Office of Civil Rights in 1983 and stopped responding to claims of discrimination 31 Pigford v Glickman edit Main article Pigford v Glickman Following long standing concerns black farmers joined a class action discrimination suit against the USDA filed in federal court in 1997 32 An attorney called it the most organized largest civil rights case in the history of the country 33 Also in 1997 black farmers from at least five states held protests in front of the USDA headquarters in Washington D C 34 Protests in front of the USDA were a strategy employed in later years as the black farmers sought to keep national attention focused on the plight of the black farmers Representatives of the National Black Farmers Association met with President Bill Clinton and other administration officials at the White House And NBFA s president testified before the United States House Committee on Agriculture 35 In Pigford v Glickman U S Federal District Court Judge Paul L Friedman approved the settlement and consent decree on April 14 1999 32 The settlement recognized discrimination against 22 363 black farmers but the NBFA would later call the agreement incomplete because more than 70 000 were excluded 36 Nevertheless the settlement was deemed to be the largest ever civil rights class action settlement in American history Lawyers estimated the value of the settlement to be more than 2 billion 37 Some farmers would have their debts forgiven 38 Judge Friedman appointed a monitor to oversee the settlement 37 Farmers in Alabama Mississippi Arkansas and Georgia were among those affected by the settlement 39 The NBFA s president was invited to testify before congress on this matter numerous times following the settlement including before the United States Senate Committee on Agriculture on September 12 2000 when he testified that many farmers had not yet received payments and others were left out of the settlement It was later revealed that one DoJ staff general attorney was unlicensed while she was handling black farmers cases 40 NBFA called for all those cases to be reheard 41 The Chicago Tribune reported in 2004 that the result of such longstanding USDA discrimination was that black farmers had been forced out of business at a rate three times faster than white farmers In 1920 1 in 7 U S farmers was African American and by 2004 the number was 1 in 100 USDA spokesman Ed Loyd when acknowledging that the USDA loan process was unfair to minority farmers had claimed it was hard to determine the effect on such farmers 42 In 2006 the Government Accountability Office GAO issued a report highly critical of the USDA in its handling of the black farmers cases 43 NBFA continued to lobby Congress to provide relief NBFA s John Boyd farmer secured congressional support for legislation that would provide 100 million in funds to settle late filer cases In 2006 a bill was introduced into the House of Representatives and later the Senate by Senator George Felix Allen 44 In 2007 Boyd testified before the United States House Committee on the Judiciary about this legislation 45 As the organization was making headway by gathering Congressional supporters in 2007 it was revealed that some USDA Farm Services Agency employees were engaged in activities aimed at blocking Congressional legislation that would aid the black farmers 46 Barack Obama then a U S Senator lent his support to the black farmers issues in 2007 47 A bill co sponsored by Obama passed the Senate in 2007 48 In early June 2008 hundreds of black farmers denied a chance to have their cases heard in the Pigford settlement filed a new lawsuit against USDA 49 The Senate and House versions of the black farmers bill reopening black farmers discrimination cases became law in June 2008 50 Some news reports said that the new law could affect up to 74 000 black farmers 51 In October 2008 the GAO issued a report criticizing the USDA s handling of discrimination complaints 52 The GAO recommended an oversight review board to examine civil rights complaints 53 After numerous public rallies and an intensive NBFA member lobbying effort Congress approved and Obama signed into law in December 2010 legislation that set aside 1 15 billion to resolve the outstanding black farmers cases NBFA s John W Boyd Jr attended the bill signing ceremony at the White House 45 As of 2013 90 000 African American Hispanic female and Native American farmers had filed claims It was reported that some had been found fraudulent or transparently bogus In Maple Hill North Carolina by 2013 the number of successful claimants was four times the number of farms with 1 out of 9 African Americans being paid while claimants were not required by the USDA to present documentary evidence that they had been unfairly treated or had even tried to farm Lack of documentation is an issue complicated by the USDA practice of discarding denied applications after three years 54 Keepseagle v Vilsack edit In 1999 Native American farmers discriminated in a similar fashion to black farmers filed a class action lawsuit against the USDA alleging loan discrimination under the ECOA and the APA This case relied heavily on its predecessor Pigford v Glickman in terms of the reasoning it set forth in the lawsuit 27 Eventually a settlement was reached between the plaintiffs and the USDA to the amount of up to 760 million awardable through individual damages claims 55 These claims could be used for monetary relief debt relief and or tax relief The filing period began June 29 2011 and lasted 180 days 56 Track A claimants would be eligible for up to 50 000 whereas Track B claimants would be eligible for up to 250 000 with a higher standard of proof 56 Garcia v Vilsack edit Main article Garcia v Vilsack In 2000 similar to Pigford v Glickman a class action lawsuit was filed in the U S District Court for the District of Columbia on behalf of Hispanic farmers alleging that the USDA discriminated against them in terms of credit transactions and disaster benefits in direct violation of ECOA As per the settlement 1 33 billion is available for compensation in awards of up to 50 000 or 250 000 while an additional 160 million is available in debt relief 27 Love v Vilsack edit Main article Love v Vilsack In 2001 similar to Garcia v Vilsack a class action lawsuit was filed in the same court alleging discrimination on the basis of gender A Congressional response to the lawsuit resulted in the passing of the Equality for Women Farmers Act which created a system that would allow for allegations of gender discrimination to be heard against the USDA and enable claims for damages 27 Environmental justice initiatives editIn their 2012 environmental justice strategy the U S Department of Agriculture USDA stated an ongoing desire to integrate environmental justice into its core mission and operations In 2011 Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack emphasized the USDA s focus on EJ in rural communities around the United States as well as connecting with Indigenous Tribes and ensuring they understand and receive their environmental rights USDA does fund programs with social and environmental equity goals however it has no staff dedicated solely to EJ Background edit On February 16 1994 President Clinton issued Executive Order 12898 Federal Actions to Address Environmental Justice in Minority Populations and Low Income Populations Executive Order 12898 requires that achieving EJ must be part of each federal agency s mission Under Executive Order 12898 federal agencies must enforce all health and environmental statutes in areas with minority and low income populations ensure public participation improve research and data collection relating to the health and environment of minority and low income populations and identify differential patterns of consumption of natural resources among minority and low income populations The Executive Order also created an Interagency Working Group IWG consisting of 11 heads of departments and agencies 57 2012 Environmental Justice Strategy edit On February 7 2012 the USDA released a final Environmental Justice Strategic Plan identifying new and updated goals and performance measures beyond what USDA identified in a 1995 EJ strategy that was adopted in response to E O 12898 58 Generally USDA believes its existing technical and financial assistance programs provide solutions to environmental inequity such as its initiatives on education food deserts and economic development in impacted communities Natural Resources and Environment Under Secretary Harris Sherman is the political appointee generally responsible for USDA s EJ strategy with Patrick Holmes a senior staffer to the Under Secretary playing a coordinating role USDA has no staff dedicated solely to EJ 59 EJ Initiatives in Tribal Communities edit Tribal development edit USDA has had a role in implementing Michelle Obama s Let s Move campaign in tribal areas by increasing Bureau of Indian Education schools participation in federal nutrition programs by developing community gardens on tribal lands and developing tribal food policy councils 60 More than 6 2 billion in Rural Development funding has been allocated for community infrastructure in Indian country and is distributed via 47 state offices that altogether cover the entire continental United States Hawaii and Alaska 59 Such funding has been used for a variety of reasons Rural housing edit single family housing direct loans loan guarantees loans for very low income homeowners financing for affordable rental housing financing for farm laborers and their familiesCommunity facilities edit child and senior care centers emergency services healthcare institutions educational institutions tribal administration buildingsBusiness and cooperative programs edit increased access to broadband connections tribal workplace development and employment opportunities sustainable renewable energy development regional food systems financing and technical assistance for entrepreneurs including loans and lending increased access to capital through Tribal CDFIsUtilities edit increased access to 21st century telecommunications services reliable and affordable water and wastewater systems financing electric systems integrating electric smart grid technologies 61 Tribal relations edit In 1997 the U S Forest Service USFS published a resource guide aimed at helping USFS officials with developing and maintaining relations with different tribal governments To that end and in coordination with the Forest Service s 4 point American Indian Alaska Native policy the resource guide discusses how to Maintain a governmental relationship with Federally Recognized tribal governments Implement Forest Service programs and activities honoring Indian treaty rights and fulfill legally mandated trust responsibilities to the extent that they are determine applicable to National Forest System lands Administer programs and activities to address and be sensitive to traditional Native religious beliefs and practices Provide research transfer of technology and technical assistance to Indian governments 62 The USFS works to maintain good governmental relationships through regular intergovernmental meetings acknowledgement of pre existing tribal sovereignty and a better general understanding of tribal government which varies from tribe to tribe Indian treaty rights and trust responsibilities are honored through visits to tribal neighbors discussions of mutual interest and attempts to honor and accommodate the legal positions of Indians and the federal government Addressing and demonstrating sensitivity to Native religious beliefs and practices includes walking through Native lands and acknowledging cultural needs when implementing USFS activities Providing research technology and assistance to Indian governments is shown through collaboration of ecological studies and sharing of various environmental technologies as well as the inclusion of traditional Native practices in contemporary operations of the USFS 62 The Intertribal Technical Assistance Network works to improve access of tribal governments communities and individuals to USDA technical assistance programs 63 Tribal Services Cooperatives edit The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service provides APHIS Veterinary Services which serve the tribal community by promoting and fostering safe animal trade and care This includes prevention of pests and disease from herd and fisheries as well as surveys for diseases on or near Native American lands that can affect traditionally hunted wildlife 64 full citation needed The APHIS also provides Wildlife Services which help with wildlife damage on Native lands This includes emergency trainings outreach consultation internship opportunities for students and general education on damage reduction livestock protection and disease monitoring 65 full citation needed Meanwhile the Agricultural Marketing Service AMS is exploring a program to use meat from bisons raised on tribal land to supply AMS food distribution programs to tribes 59 Other EJ Initiatives edit Technical and financial assistance edit The NRCS Strike Force Initiative has identified impoverished counties in Mississippi Georgia and Arkansas to receive increased outreach and training regarding USDA assistance programs USDA credits this increased outreach with generating a 196 percent increase in contracts representing more than 250 000 acres of farmland in its Environmental Quality Incentives Program 63 In 2001 NRCS funded and published a study Environmental Justice Perceptions of Issues Awareness and Assistance focused on rural Southern Black Belt counties and analyzing how the NRCS workforce could more effectively integrate environmental justice into impacted communities 66 The Farm Services Agency in 2011 devoted 100 000 of its Socially Disadvantaged Farmers and Ranchers program budget to improving its outreach to counties with persistent poverty 67 USDA s Risk Management Agency has initiated education and outreach to low income farmers regarding use of biological controls rather than pesticides for pest control 59 The Rural Utilities Service administers water and wastewater loans including SEARCH Grants that are targeted to financially distressed small rural communities and other opportunities specifically for Alaskan Native villages 68 69 Mapping edit USFS has established several Urban Field Stations to research urban natural resources structure function stewardship and benefits 70 By mapping urban tree coverage the agency hopes to identify and prioritize EJ communities for urban forest projects 70 Another initiative highlighted by the agency is the Food and Nutrition Service and Economic Research Service s Food Desert Locator 71 The Locator provides a spatial view of food deserts defined as a low income census tract where a substantial number or share of residents has low access to a supermarket or large grocery store The mapped deserts can be used to direct agency resources to increase access to fresh fruits and vegetables and other food assistance programs 72 Other editPrivate sector relationships edit USDA formalized a relationship with the Global Food Safety Initiative GFSI in 2018 GFSI is a private organization where members of the Consumer Goods Forum have control over benchmarking requirements in recognition of private standards for food safety In August 2018 USDA achieved Technical Equivalence against Version 7 1 of the GFSI Benchmarking Requirements for their Harmonized GAP Plus certification programme 73 where Technical Equivalence is limited to government owned food safety certification programmes This is misaligned with U S Government Policy and OMB Circular No A 119 74 which instructs its agencies to adopt voluntary consensus standards before relying upon industry standards private standards or developing government standards Harmonized GAP Plus Standard V 3 0 was published in February 2021 75 with reference to GFSI Guidance Document Version 2020 Part III ignoring reference to international standards and technical specifications ISO 22000 and ISO T S 22002 3 Prerequisite Programmes for Farming The USDA exception to OMB Circular No A 119 might be attributed to lobbying and influence of Consumer Goods Forum members in Washington D C 76 In November 2021 GFSI announced its Technical Equivalence was under strategic review explaining the assessment has raised concerns across many stakeholders 77 COVID 19 relief edit During the COVID 19 pandemic Congress allocated funding to the USDA to address the disturbances rippling through the agricultural sector On April 17 2020 U S Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program 78 The American food supply chain had to adapt and it remains safe secure and strong and we all know that starts with America s farmers and ranchers This program will not only provide immediate relief for our farmers and ranchers but it will also allow for the purchase and distribution of our agricultural abundance to help our fellow Americans in need This provided 16 billion for farmers and ranchers and 3 billion to purchase surplus produce dairy and meat from farmers for distribution to charitable organizations 79 As part of the Coronavirus Aid Relief and Economic Security Act CARES and the Families First Coronavirus Response Act FFCRA USDA has up to an additional 873 3 million available in Section 32 funding to purchase a variety of agricultural products for distribution to food banks 850 million for food bank administrative costs and USDA food purchases 79 Related legislation editImportant legislation setting policy of the USDA includes the 80 1890 1891 1897 1906 Meat Inspection Act 1906 Pure Food and Drug Act 1914 Cotton Futures Act 1916 Federal Farm Loan Act 1917 Food Control and Production Acts 1921 Packers and Stockyards Act 1922 Grain Futures Act 1922 National Agricultural Conference 1923 Agricultural Credits Act 1930 Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act 1930 Foreign Agricultural Service Act 1933 Agricultural Adjustment Act AAA 1933 Farm Credit Act 1935 Resettlement Administration 1936 Soil Conservation and Domestic Allotment Act 1937 Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act 1941 National Victory Garden Program 1941 Steagall Amendment 1946 Farmers Home Administration 1946 National School Lunch Act PL 79 396 1946 Research and Marketing Act 1947 Federal Insecticide Fungicide and Rodenticide Act PL 80 104 1948 Hope Aiken Agriculture Act PL 80 897 1949 Agricultural Act PL 81 439 Section 416 b 1954 Food for Peace Act PL 83 480 1954 Agricultural Act PL 83 690 1956 Soil Bank Program authorized 1956 Mutual Security Act PL 84 726 1957 Federal Plant Pest Act PL 85 36 1957 Poultry Products Inspection Act PL 85 172 1958 Food Additives Amendment PL 85 929 1958 Humane Slaughter Act 1958 Agricultural Act PL 85 835 1961 Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act PL 87 128 1964 Agricultural Act PL 88 297 1964 Food Stamp Act PL 88 525 1964 Federal Insecticide Fungicide and Rodenticide Act Extension PL 88 305 1965 Appalachian Regional Development Act 1965 Food and Agriculture Act PL 89 321 1966 Child Nutrition Act PL 89 642 1967 Wholesome Meat Act PL 90 201 1968 Wholesome Poultry Products Act PL 90 492 1970 Agricultural Act PL 91 524 1972 Federal Environmental Pesticide Control Act PL 92 516 1970 Environmental Quality Improvement Act 1970 Food Stamp Act PL 91 671 1972 Rural Development Act 1972 Rural Development Act Reform 3 31 1972 National School Lunch Act Amendments Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women Infants and Children PL 92 433 1973 Agriculture and Consumer Protection Act PL 93 86 1974 Safe Drinking Water Act PL 93 523 1977 Food and Agriculture Act PL 95 113 1985 Food Security Act PL 99 198 1990 Food Agriculture Conservation and Trade Act of 1990 PL 101 624 This act includes the Organic Foods Production Act of 1990 1996 Federal Agriculture Improvement and Reform Act PL 104 127 1996 Food Quality Protection Act PL 104 170 2000 Agriculture Risk Protection Act PL 106 224 2002 Farm Security and Rural Investment Act PL 107 171 2008 Food Conservation and Energy Act of 2008 PL 110 246 2010 Healthy Hunger Free Kids Act of 2010 PL 111 296Images edit nbsp A 1918 call from the United States Department of Agriculture to feed birds in the winter source source source source source source Hemp for Victory a short documentary produced by the department during World War II nbsp Miss Mary C Foley Artist at Dept of Ag 1 5 26 nbsp A guide to improving farmhouse kitchens put out by the department s Institute of Home Economics Agricultural Research Service in 1952 nbsp A guide to making clothes put out by the Institute of Home Economics in 1959 nbsp The Secretary of Agriculture s office is located in the Jamie L Whitten Building nbsp USDA Visitor s Center in the Jamie L Whitten Building nbsp The Beagle Brigade is part of the USDA s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service This piece of luggage at Dulles Airport may contain contraband See also edit nbsp United States portal nbsp Politics portal nbsp Agriculture portalAdjusted Gross Revenue Insurance Alternative Agricultural Research and Commercialization Corporation Butter Powder Tilt Congressional seed distribution Institute of Child Nutrition United States farm bill history of Congressional laws on agriculture United States Agricultural Society USDA home loan Food and Agriculture CouncilsNotes and references edit a b United States Department of Agriculture FY 2024 Budget Summary PDF U S Department of Agriculture Retrieved August 5 2023 Good Keith February 24 2021 Senate Confirms Tom Vilsack as Secretary of Agriculture Farm Policy News Farm Policy News Archived from the original on February 19 2022 Retrieved October 1 2021 History of FNS PDF usda gov Archived from the original PDF on September 12 2016 Retrieved July 1 2016 USDA Agencies USDA FNS Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program SNAP June 21 2013 Retrieved December 29 2013 United States Interagency Council on Homelessness USICH Archived from the original on April 24 2012 It is not copyright and is online here for free download Agricultural Research Service PDF USDA Retrieved November 1 2017 History of Human Nutrition Research in the U S Department of Agriculture Government Printing Office ISBN 978 0 16 094384 3 a b Preliminary Inventory Issues 187 195 National Archives publication 1977 Page 7 Ellsworth Henry Leavitt 1791 1858 Social Networks and Archival Context snaccooperative org Retrieved September 19 2020 7 U S Code 2201 Establishment of Department LII Legal Information Institute Retrieved February 7 2024 12 Stat 387 now codified at 7 U S C 2201 Salvador Ricardo Bittman Mark December 4 2020 Opinion Goodbye U S D A Hello Department of Food and Well Being The New York Times Retrieved December 10 2020 Evening Star June 18 1868 page 4 column 4 25 Stat 659 February 9 1889 Danbom David B 1986 The Agricultural Experiment Station and Professionalization Scientists Goals for Agriculture Agricultural History 60 2 246 255 JSTOR 3743443 David M Kennedy Freedom from fear The American people in depression and war 1929 1945 1999 p 203 Ziegelman Jane Coe Andrew 2016 A Square Meal A Culinary History of the Great Depression HarperCollins ISBN 978 0 06 221641 0 Agriculture Department Will Pay 4 7 Billion To Farmers Hit In Trade War npr Retrieved March 27 2023 Erickson Britt USDA commits 1 billion to climate smart agriculture Chemical amp Engineering News Pitt David October 18 2022 USDA announces 1 billion debt relief for 36 000 farmers Associated Press Secretary Perdue Announces Creation of Undersecretary for Trade Retrieved June 16 2018 a b Records of the Bureau of Plant Industry Soils and Agricultural Engineering BPISAE Administrative History Archives gov Retrieved December 29 2013 USDA Problems Continue to Hinder the Timely Processing of Discrimination Complaints PDF General Accounting Office January 1999 Archived from the original PDF on February 24 2009 Retrieved October 16 2007 Brooks Roy L 2004 Atonement and Forgiveness A New Model for Black Reparations University of California Press pp 7 8 ISBN 0 520 24813 9 a b c d Garcia v Vilsack A Policy and Legal Analysis of a USDA Discrimination Case HeinOnline https heinonline org ezproxy1 lib asu edu HOL P h hein crs crsmthmatal0001 amp i 11 Helms Douglas Eroding the Color Line The Soil Conservation Service and the Civil Rights Act of 1964 Agricultural History vol 65 no 2 Agricultural History Society 1991 pp 35 53 http www jstor org stable 3743706 a b Johnson Kimberley S October 2011 Racial Orders Congress and the Agricultural Welfare State 1865 1940 Studies in American Political Development 25 2 143 161 doi 10 1017 S0898588X11000095 United States Black US Farmers Awaiting Billions in Promised Debt Relief Asia News Monitor Bangkok September 3 2021 ProQuest 2568289864 GAO 06 469R Pigford Settlement The Role of the Court Appointed Monitor PDF Retrieved March 2 2022 a b Tadlock Cowan Jody Feder June 14 2011 The Pigford Cases USDA Settlement of Discrimination Suits by Black Farmers PDF Congressional Research Service Retrieved December 1 2011 PBS The News Hour 1999 PBS Retrieved December 29 2013 Charlene Gilbert Quinn Eli 2002 Homecoming The Story of African American Farmers Beacon Press ISBN 978 0 8070 0963 5 Retrieved December 29 2013 Treatment of minority and limited resource producers by the U S Department of Agriculture U S G P O January 1 1997 ISBN 978 0 16 055410 0 Retrieved December 29 2013 M Susan Orr Klopfer Fred Klopfer Barry Klopfer 2005 Where Rebels Roost Mississippi Civil Rights Revisited Lulu Press ISBN 978 1 4116 4102 0 Retrieved December 29 2013 self published source a b Judge Approves Settlement for Black Farmers New York Times ASSOCIATED PRESS April 15 1999 Retrieved December 29 2013 Black Farmers Lawsuit NPR March 2 1999 Retrieved December 29 2013 Southern farmers among those affected by court case Archived from the original on July 11 2012 Daniel Pulliam February 11 2005 Unlicensed Hire GOVEXEC com Archived from the original on April 16 2005 ABOUT US nbfa Retrieved August 6 2020 Martin Andrew August 8 2004 USDA discrimination accused of withering black farmers Chicago Tribune Retrieved December 29 2013 Black Farmers Follow Up on USDA Grievances National Public Radio April 25 2006 Retrieved December 29 2013 Allen Unveils Bill to Help Black Farmers The Washington Post Associated Press September 29 2006 Retrieved December 29 2013 a b NATIONAL BLACK FARMERS ASSOCIATION www nationalblackfarmersassociation org Retrieved March 27 2023 Obama USDA Should Not Undermine Legislation to Help Black Farmers August 8 2007 Archived from the original on November 11 2008 The Hill newspaper 2007 Thehill com Retrieved December 29 2013 Ben Evans December 17 2007 Senate Votes to Reopen Black Farmers Lawsuits Associated Press Archived from the original on October 30 2008 Retrieved April 26 2013 Ben Evans June 4 2008 Black farmers file new suit against USDA FOXNews com Associated Press Retrieved December 29 2013 Ben Evans June 28 2008 Reopening black farmers suits could cost billions USA Today Associated Press Retrieved December 29 2013 Help Ahead for Black Farmers NPR December 31 2007 Retrieved December 29 2013 Etter Lauren October 23 2008 USDA Faulted Over Minority Farmers The Wall Street Journal Archived from the original on June 26 2013 Retrieved December 29 2013 Fears Darryl October 23 2008 USDA Action On Bias Complaints Is Criticized The Washington Post Retrieved December 29 2013 Sharon LaFraniere April 25 2013 U S Opens Spigot After Farmers Claim Discrimination The New York Times Retrieved April 26 2013 claimants were not required to present documentary evidence that they had been unfairly treated or had even tried to farm Native American Farmer and Rancher Class Action Settlement Keepseagle v Vilsack Natural Resources Conservation Service Louisiana Archived from the original on May 25 2020 a b Keepseagle settlement filing period open Delta Farm Press July 26 2011 advance lexis com ezproxy1 lib asu edu api document collection news amp id urn contentItem 53F3 DGH1 DY7H 500C 00000 00 amp context 1516831 Accessed November 28 2021 Summary of Executive Order 12898 Federal Actions to Address Environmental Justice in Minority Populations and Low Income Populations Environmental Protection Agency February 22 2013 USDA Strategic Plan http www dm usda gov hmmd FinalUSDAEJSTRATScan 1 pdf Archived 2012 02 26 at the Wayback Machine a b c d Holmes interview USDA Strategic Plan at 6 Collaborating for Prosperity With American Indians and Alaska Natives PDF Federal Depository Library Program a b Mitchell Joe 1997 Forest Service National Resource Guide to American Indian and Alaska Native Relations USFS a b Progress Report PDF USDA Archived from the original PDF on February 26 2012 APHIS Veterinary Services Helping Native Americans Protect Their Livestock and Fisheries United States Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service 2012 APHIS Wildlife Services Controlling Wildlife Damage on Native American Lands United States Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service 2012 USDA NRCS EJ Guidance https www nrcs usda gov Internet FSE DOCUMENTS stelprdb1045586 pdf Archived March 8 2021 at the Wayback Machine USDA Progress Report at 9 http www dm usda gov hmmd FinalEJImplementationreport 1 pdf Archived 2012 02 26 at the Wayback Machine Water and Environmental Programs Fact Sheet PDF USDA Archived from the original PDF on June 25 2012 Retrieved July 2 2012 USDA Water and Environmental Programs Website http www rurdev usda gov UWEP HomePage html Archived 2012 06 21 at the Wayback Machine a b USDA Strategic Plan at 6 http www dm usda gov hmmd FinalUSDAEJSTRATScan 1 pdf Archived 2012 02 26 at the Wayback Machine USDA ERS Food Access Research Atlas www ers usda gov Retrieved September 23 2019 Velde interview GFSI Announces USDA AMS GAP Plus Certification Programme Achieves Technical Equivalence mygfsi com GFSI OMB Circular A 119 Federal Participation in the Development and Use of Voluntary Consensus Standards and in Conformity Assessment Activities PDF whitehouse gov The White House Harmonized GAP Plus Standard PDF ams usda gov USDA Doering Christopher Where the dollars go Lobbying a big business for large food and beverage CPGs fooddive com Food Dive GFSI Launches a Strategic Review of its Technical Equivalence Programme mygfsi com GFSI USDA Announces Coronavirus Food Assistance Program United States Department of Agriculture April 17 2020 Retrieved November 23 2021 a b USDA Announces Coronavirus Food Assistance Program www usda gov Archived from the original on May 19 2020 Retrieved April 30 2020 Laws and Regulations www usda gov Retrieved October 19 2023 Further reading editBaker Gladys L ed Century of service the first 100 years of the United States Department of Agriculture US Department of Agriculture 1963 the standard history online Benedict Murray R 1950 The Trend in American Agricultural Policy 1920 1949 Zeitschrift fur die gesamte Staatswissenschaft 106 1 97 122 JSTOR 40747300 Benedict Murray R Farm policies of the United States 1790 1950 a study of their origins and development 1966 546pp online also another copy Cochrane Willard W The Development of American Agriculture A Historical Analysis 2nd ed U of Minnesota Press 1993 512pp Cochrane Willard W and Mary Ellen Ryan American Farm Policy 1948 1973 U of Minnesota Press 1976 CQ Congress and the Nation 1965 2021 highly detailed coverage of each presidency since Truman extensive coverage of agricultural policies online free to borrow Coppess Jonathan 2018 The Fault Lines of Farm Policy A Legislative and Political History of the Farm Bill U of Nebraska Press ISBN 978 1 4962 0512 4 Gardner Bruce L 1996 The Federal Government in Farm Commodity Markets Recent Reform Efforts in a Long Term Context Agricultural History 70 2 177 195 JSTOR 3744532 Griesbach Rob 2010 BARC History Bureau of Plant Industry PDF Matusow Allen J Farm policies and politics in the Truman years 1967 online Orden David Zulauf Carl October 2015 Political Economy of the 2014 Farm Bill American Journal of Agricultural Economics 97 5 1298 1311 doi 10 1093 ajae aav028 hdl 10919 96941 Sumner Daniel A Farm Subsidy Tradition and Modern Agricultural Realities PDF University of California Agricultural Issues Center CiteSeerX 10 1 1 411 284 Winters Donald L Henry Cantwell Wallace as Secretary of Agriculture 1921 1924 1970 Zulauf Carl Orden David 2016 80 Years of Farm Bills Evolutionary Reform PDF Choices 31 4 1 2 JSTOR choices 31 4 16 Historiography edit Zobbe Henrik On the foundation of agricultural policy research in the United States Dept of Agricultural Economics Staff Paper 02 08 Purdue University 2002 onlinePrimary sources edit Rasmussen Wayne D ed Agriculture in the United States a documentary history 4 vol Random House 1975 3661pp vol 4 onlineExternal links editOfficial website nbsp Department of Agriculture on USAspending gov Department of Agriculture in the Federal Register National Archives document of the USDA s origins Works by or about United States Department of Agriculture at Internet Archive historic archives Historic technical reports from USDA and other federal agencies are available in the Technical Report Archive and Image Library TRAIL USA USDA Issues grants to support for robotics research USDA Awards 97 M for Renewable Energy Projects archived 10 October 2007 Works by United States Department of Agriculture at LibriVox public domain audiobooks nbsp nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to United States Department of Agriculture nbsp Scholia has an organization profile for United States Department of Agriculture Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title United States Department of Agriculture amp oldid 1206659322, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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