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Back in 1947, nearly one-third of the labor force worked on farms. In those days if you didn’t have a relative who worked on a farm, you knew someone who did. As time and technology progressed and jobs moved from farms to factories, generations began to lose their connection to agriculture and the land as the source of their food. Currently, there is too much distance between consumers and those who produce their food.

But, there is also hope for those of us working to rebuild this critical connection. Last Friday I presented a $175,000 Rural Business Enterprise Grant (RBEG) to provide critical access to credit to a group of small family farmers who are building a bridge to consumers and stimulating the local economy through local foods. This project is a great example of how USDA Rural Development programs can advance the Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food initiative.

The Department of Agriculture is a big institution, with a $149 billion budget and 114,000 employees.  When Secretary Vilsack asked me to spearhead the Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food initiative, my first impulse wasn’t to create new programs and authorities, but rather to figure out how better to use the resources at hand.  Of course, I was aware of certain USDA programs that have, for years, focused on local food, such as the Farmers Market Promotion Program within the Agricultural Marketing Service.  I was also aware that Congress, as part of the 2008 farm bill, took new interest in local foods by, for example, directing that USDA set aside 5% of funding to promote local foods within the Business and Industry Loan Program in the Rural Business and Cooperative Service.  Finally, I knew many existing USDA programs, while not dedicated to local food, could be harnessed to better support local and regional food systems.

President Obama’s America’s Great Outdoors Initiative came to Nebraska on July 12, when 200 attendees gathered in Grand Island for a listening session.  They were joined by Dave White, Chief of the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), and senior representatives of the U.S. Departments of Agriculture (USDA) and the Interior (DOI).

Last month we were proud to announce awards for the Value-Added Producer Grants program.  Managed by USDA’s Rural Development, this program has had nearly a decade of success in helping producers capture more value for their agricultural products by producing, processing, or marketing their product in a way that enhances the value or expands the customer base for that product.  Supporting this type of activity also creates new jobs, contributes to economic development, and enhances consumer food choice.

Hawaii and the Pacific Basin

The dwindling global supply of fossil fuels and the resulting escalation in prices has set the stage for entry of commercial biofuel produced from biomass, including co-products and bi-products.  This transition in the energy sector’s feed stocks offers Hawaii a unique opportunity to locally produce biofuel from locally produced biomass feed stocks, and ultimately support the stabilization of the state’s energy resources; increase the local circulation of energy dollars; and further under gird Hawaii’s agricultural industry. 

As further evidence of Secretary Vilsack’s belief that broadband is the foundation of rural economic development, he brought together American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) Broadband Initiatives Program (BIP) recipients, economic development experts, and USDA officials in Dallas last week.  They worked together to prepare for the deployment and expansion of broadband into some of the most remote locations in rural America.   The workshop provided the opportunity for recipients to learn about compliance and reporting requirements associated with their funding packages.  Additionally, the workshop brought together representatives in the broadband industry with economic development experts to communicate how their unique roles can work together in a holistic approach to community economic development.

More than 220 USDA employees met Thursday at the Varsity Theatre in Davis, Calif. to share their thoughts during the first listening session designed to help implement a cultural transformation within the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Members of the USDA Cultural Transformation Task Force were present to hear ideas and to ensure this effort results in a more diverse, inclusive and high performance organization.