USDA Blog

As we reflect in celebration of USDA’s 150 th anniversary, it’s easy to take pride in the problem-solving abilities of agricultural scientists since 1862. The challenges in America have been great, including the Dust Bowl, wars, human health threats, and attacks on crops and animals from pests...

This post is part of the Science Tuesday feature series on the USDA blog. Check back each week as we showcase stories and news from USDA’s rich science and research portfolio. When people think about keeping our homeland safe, they don’t usually think about animal diseases that threaten our nation’s...

Americans love their shrimp. No matter how you eat them, by pounds consumed, the popularity of these delectable little morsels ranks well ahead of salmon and more than doubles that of canned tuna.

This post is part of the Science Tuesday feature series on the USDA blog. Check back each week as we showcase stories and news from USDA’s rich science and research portfolio. Stainless steel’s all the rage in gourmet kitchen design, but its appeal could soon extend well beyond the kitchen to the...

Think it’s safe to go outside without mosquitoes bothering you? Think again! Labor Day is over, but mosquitoes are still buzzing around, waiting for their next prey. This blood-feeding pest is more than annoying, since some mosquitoes can transmit viruses that can cause diseases such as Zika.

This post is part of the Science Tuesday feature series on the USDA blog. Check back each week as we showcase stories and news from the USDA’s rich science and research portfolio. You’ve probably heard that the honey bees in this country are in trouble, with about one-third of our managed colonies...

ARS developed the Beltsville Small White turkey in response to consumer demand. It dominated the market and transformed how Americans think of Thanksgiving. (ARS photo)

Everyone wants healthy, thriving honey bee colonies. One-third of the food we eat requires pollinators, and commercial beekeepers transport honey bees hundreds of miles each year to pollinate almond trees and other crops.

September is National Rice Month, and the Agricultural Research Service’s (ARS) Dale Bumpers National Rice Research Center in Stuttgart, Arkansas, is well positioned—literally and figuratively—to support the production, harvest, and public enjoyment of this versatile and nutritious grain. And on the...

Vast acreage of dry lands may evoke images of a desolate, scorched desert that is uninhabitable to humans. But the arid and semi-arid dry lands of about half of both the United States’ and the world’s land surfaces actually are complex ecosystems made up variously of grasses, shrubs, agriculture...