Food And Nutrition

In the United States, more than one-third of all available food goes uneaten through loss or waste and when landfilled it contributes to greenhouse gas emissions. On May 26, 2021, the U.S. Department of Agriculture hosted our first ever USDA Food Loss and Waste Innovation Fair. This free, virtual fair highlighted businesses that are creating or implementing state-of-the-art technical solutions to reduce food loss and waste throughout the food system – from farm to table – and highlighted USDA activities in this space.

When Rebecca and Parker Catt became parents, they faced a new set of challenges, including making the right choices in deciding what their baby James should be fed. After Rebecca heard about the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) from a friend at the gym, she went to a WIC clinic near her home in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. There she discovered she qualified for the program and signed up.

Traditional foods, flavors, and cuisines offer a variety of healthy and delicious choices. Celebrate the cultural heritage of your family and friends with recipes and resources from Nutrition.gov, like these three nutritious meal ideas:

In 2018, only 2.6 million tons of food scraps were composted, compared to 35 million tons that went into landfills, according to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). What are organizations doing to increase composting in the United States? In observance of International Compost Awareness Week (May 2-8), this interview features insights with Frank Franciosi, executive director of the U.S. Composting Council.

Nutrition plays a key role in helping infants to grow into healthy children and adults. Since the early 1900s, USDA has provided resources for breastfeeding, introducing first foods, building lasting healthy eating habits, and more. Explore how infant nutrition advice has changed over the decades with these resources from the Historical Dietary Guidance Digital Collection.

Like countless schools across the country, the Live Oak Unified School District, about 50 miles north of Sacramento, had to shift their operations in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) links U.S. agriculture to the world to enhance export opportunities and global food security. Globally, food waste is estimated at 1.6 billion tonnes and arises from many causes from farm to table. In developing countries, these causes include lack of cold-chain storage (refrigeration and freezing, for example), poor-post harvest handling techniques, and lack of access to markets. What is FAS doing to help reduce food loss and waste? This interview features insights from Paige Cowie, Resilient Agriculture Program Manager, USDA Foreign Agricultural Service.

During these challenging times, it's especially important to know that we have a safe and strong food supply. Here's what scientists and Cooperative Extension experts at North Carolina State University are doing to help.

ReFED is a national nonprofit working to advance data-driven solutions to reduce food loss and waste throughout the U.S. food system. ReFED is also a private-sector partner with USDA, EPA, and FDA’s interagency initiative to reduce food loss and waste. The organization has launched a Roadmap to 2030 and a new Insights Engine aiming to help reduce food loss and waste. This interview features insights from Dana Gunders, Executive Director, ReFED.

Sitting down for the Super Bowl on Feb. 7 might look a little different this year, but one thing remains the same: you need the perfect game day protein to fuel up for the Big Game. America has spoken and it’s down to chicken wing or pork rib - which team will you be on?