USDA Blog

Since childhood I’ve always wanted to be a veterinarian, which makes my position at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) the perfect job for me. I’m Dr. Amy Winter, a Veterinary Medical Officer with the USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS). I’m stationed at the National...

The long battle to mitigate and potentially eliminate cheatgrass, one of the American West’s most menacing invasive weeds, has just taken a positive step forward. U.S. Forest Service research, conducted by ecologist Susan Meyer, has demonstrated in field trials that the fungal pathogen known...

Last week Agriculture Under Secretary for Rural Development Dallas Tonsager met with Twenty-two Utah business leaders for a White House Business Council roundtable. The meeting was hosted by Zions Bank Corporation and USDA Rural Development. Salt Lake City was one of the 100 communities across the...

John Yellow Bird Steele, President of the Oglala Sioux Tribe (OST) signed a proclamation declaring June 2011 National Homeownership Month. The signing event took place in Pine Ridge, South Dakota, earlier this month with Partnership for Housing and USDA Rural Development on site for the ceremony....

Farm Service Agency (FSA) acting Administrator Bruce Nelson praised Director of Contracting Activity Designee Joyce Bowie recently for her career work that earned her the distinguished USDA Champion Award at the Small Business and AbilityOne Award ceremony held at USDA. A member of the FSA...

Tommy Berend, ranch operator at the 9,000-acre Circle A Ranch in Archer County, Texas, wanted to eliminate mesquite, restore open spaces and plant native grasses on the ranch. The mesquite consumed large amounts of water in areas where Berend wanted to create habitat for quail and other wildlife...

USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) works diligently to ensure that genetically engineered (GE) organisms such as Pioneer’s hybrid corn seed is just as safe for agriculture and the environment as traditionally bred crop varieties. Our biotechnology deregulation process is a...

One of the most satisfying aspects of my job has been to hear the various ways USDA’s Value-Added Producer Grant program is making a positive difference in our rural economy. I’m pleased to announce new funding efforts by the Obama Administration to create jobs and foster new business opportunities...

This week, I joined my colleagues from all over the world for the 37th Conference of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in Rome. This bi -annual conference brings together world leaders in food and agriculture to discuss important issues related to agriculture...

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. Earlier this month, representatives of USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) spent two weeks contacting...