Blog del USDA

Forests become a veritable garden in the fall, presenting a riot of color in national forests as well as on the streets where we live. But what exactly is going on in those leaves? How – and why – do leaves change color, and why is there so much variety? It boils down to chemistry.

To update you on a story featured previously, I was honored to cut the ribbon at the grand opening of the Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe’s Mt. Pleasant Native Farmers Market. We broke ground on this project in June, and it is great to see the pavilion completed in time to share this summer’s produce...

Longleaf pine forests once dominated the Southeast. But over the past two centuries, many of these forests have disappeared along with the wildlife that called them home. Recent efforts to enhance longleaf forests on private lands are helping the ecosystem rebound as well as wildlife like the gopher...

The following guest blog is part of a series featuring the Forest Service’s work with partners on restoration across the country. By Scott Bissette, Assistant Commissioner of the North Carolina Forest Service and chair of the National Association of State Foresters Forest Markets Committee Our...

Widespread drought in California and other parts of the western United States has been widely covered, but earlier this year, drought conditions in southeast Florida were “extreme” and are still considered “abnormally dry” according to the National Drought Mitigation Center. This heavily populated...

The following guest blog describes how one state education department used a USDA Team Nutrition grant to develop training to help schools implement programs that promote student wellness and to meet updated meal standards. By Heather Hauswirth, RD, Program Specialist, Office of School Nutrition...

Across the country and around the world, more people are looking for organic options at their local markets. Thanks to the remarkable growth in the number of USDA certified organic operations, which now number more than 27,800 worldwide, consumers have more choices than ever. My agency, USDA’s...

As a society we do not expect children to learn to write without paper, we do not expect them to learn to cook without access to food, and we certainly would never expect them to learn to read without books. It’s simple: in order to learn, one must have the proper tools and experiences to do so. At...

This guest blog showcases the success story of a school food service director in an upper-class suburb of Boston. The director discusses some of the creative methods her school meal program uses to boost participation and, thereby, promote health and nutrition in their district. By Gail Koutroubas...

Reed Fitton grazes cattle on the same hilltop farm where the late conservationist Ben Logan grew up and later featured in his memoir, “The Land Remembers.” Fitton carefully manages the farm near Gays Mills, Wisconsin with a broad conservation ethic, preventing soil erosion and protecting waterways...