USDA Blog

New Mexico State Director Terry Brunner welcomed USDA Rural Development Administrator of Business and Cooperative Programs Judy Canales to Albuquerque earlier this month to kick off a two day training session for Rural Development staff and lenders from across the state.

Thank you Willie Nelson for giving us a great theme song during our journey around the great state of Texas recently as we continued the conversation about jobs and economic growth in rural America that began in December with President Obama at the White House. The Farm Service Agency Executive...

Over 100 people gathered in St.

At a Town Hall meeting in Burlington, Vermont, USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack announced the selection of Vermont Renewable Energy Company for a USDA Rural Development Business and Industry Loan Guarantee for a $10 million loan given by Community National Bank. The funds will be used to provide essential...

USDA - Ready to Move for a Healthier Generation By Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack A call to action, a challenge for a generation, no matter what we call it, First Lady Michelle Obama's announcement of the Let's Move! initiative is an ambitious goal of solving the challenge of childhood obesity...

USDA Rural Development and the Farm Services Agency sponsored the Rural New York Economic Development Forum earlier this month in Virgil, N.Y. we had an audience of about 60 business, government and economic development leaders.

Yesterday was a landmark day for USDA. The 2010 Agricultural Outlook Forum kicked off near Washington with a top-flight list of speakers, including Secretary Tom Vilsack; Deputy Secretary Kathleen Merrigan; Ambassador Ronald Kirk, U.S. Trade Representative; USDA Chief Economist Joseph Glauber and...

Deputy Secretary of Agriculture Kathleen Merrigan visited Road Runner Food Bank in Albuquerque, New Mexico today, where she took a tour of the facility and helped distribute USDA foods. Merrigan highlighted the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), and the ARRA funding that Road Runner...

A warm winter day greeted USDA Deputy Secretary Kathleen Merrigan as she visited the high desert community of Acoma Pueblo in New Mexico. Chandler Sanchez the Governor of Acoma Pueblo gave the Deputy Secretary a personal tour of the new $12-million dollar community center which is currently under...

Last week, 22 college students were given the opportunity to attend the USDA Outlook Forum to learn about agribusiness, the latest research, future trends, and policy in contemporary agriculture. The students were part of USDA’s Agricultural Outlook Forum Diversity Program, which was launched by the...