food and nutrition

On October 10, Hurricane Michael made landfall in Florida. It was the strongest storm to hit the U.S. in a quarter-century, and the strongest on record to hit the state’s panhandle. Michael went on to track across the southeastern United States and continue its destruction through southern Georgia. At USDA, we knew our mission, in this difficult situation as in all of our work was clear: do right and feed everyone.

What are the macro trends in food production and policy? In this blog, USDA Senior Economist Anne Effland gives an overview of how consumers are shaping the way food is grown and how USDA is supporting the evolving food system. Read more in the article Effland co-authored with Carolyn Dimitri in the journal Renewable Agriculture and Food Systems.

As Farm to School Month drew to a close in October, I spent a delightful day in Vermont visiting schools, meeting students and talking to the professionals responsible for serving wholesome, nutritious school meals.

Earlier this week, USDA Secretary Sonny Perdue and Acting Deputy Under Secretary for Food, Nutrition, and Consumer Services Brandon Lipps joined students in New Jersey, Virginia and the District of Columbia for wholesome school lunches in celebration of National School Lunch Week, as proclaimed by President Trump. Nearly 100,000 schools and institutions serve almost 30 million children through the National School Lunch Program. Secretary Perdue visited Discovery Elementary School in Arlington, Va., where he met with the school’s nutrition professionals, and served the children meals before joining them for lunch.

My mother has a jar in her kitchen with the phrase, “Cooking is love made visible.” I can say for a fact that her food spreads a lot of love, and I think the same could be said about school food service professionals.

As Americans, we care about our neighbors in need, and we also expect that the nutrition assistance benefits we pay for with hard-earned tax dollars are used as intended – to put food on the table. Public trust is a central part of USDA’s mission. To help meet that mission, the Department recently released the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) Fraud Framework (PDF, 216 KB) to provide states with new and innovative resources to help combat recipient fraud and benefit trafficking.

Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria – each Category 4 – all made landfall in less than a month between August and September 2017. It will be hard to ever forget these historic disasters and the toll they took on millions of American families. In recognition of the federal government’s Hurricane Disaster Preparedness Week (May 6-12), we want to assure the nation that USDA is ready to provide vital nutrition assistance to families in need when disasters strike.

Last week, USDA Acting Deputy Under Secretary for Food, Nutrition, and Consumer Services (FNCS), Brandon Lipps, made a whirlwind trip to San Antonio, Texas, to serve as the keynote speaker at the National Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) National Child Nutrition Conference and visit local sites operating FNCS programs. The highlight of his conference remarks was announcing the availability of $5.4 million in training grants to help child and adult care providers deliver first-class meal service.

In today’s school cafeterias, program operators work in fast-paced environments requiring quick and convenient access to resources to properly feed our nation’s children and effectively manage their programs. To meet this crucial need, USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) has released several exciting technology-based resources and tools to help them do just that.

Just a few weeks ago, I had an opportunity to visit the Goodwill of North Georgia Career Center in Decatur, Ga., to see firsthand how they help people in need in their community. The Career Center plays an important role in the lives of many hardworking men and women as home to several SNAP Employment & Training Programs (SNAP E&T) designed to help Georgians acquire the skills needed to find jobs that will enable them to support themselves and their families.