Tom Vilsack

Today we celebrate an historic achievement on behalf of kids across America. We have accomplished a critical step on the road to deliver healthier, more nutritious food to our nation’s schoolchildren. Today the U.S. Department of Agriculture released the final rule that sets the standards for...

Last night, in his State of the Union address, President Obama outlined his plan to build an economy that lasts – one that fulfills the basic American promise that if you work hard, you can do well enough to raise a family, own a home, and put a little away for retirement. He laid out his vision for...

Today, in Chicago, I joined Secretary Vilsack as he met with leaders from Boeing, United Airlines and Honeywell, to talk about support for the development of biofuels to power our jets. In the United States alone, passenger and cargo airlines spend about $50 billion on fuel each year. If just a...

Last week, I announced a Blueprint for Stronger Service at USDA. It is our effort to make sure that in this era of reduced budgets, the folks who live, work and raise their families in rural America don’t see reduced services from the Department. Over the past three years, USDA has made significant...

Ensuring that Americans have access to safe, nutritious food is USDA’s top priority. Yesterday afternoon, USDA introduced plans to modernize and accelerate service delivery in all areas of the Department by introducing our Blueprint for Stronger Service. The plan will help USDA and rural America...

Today at the American Farm Bureau Federation’s 93 rd Annual Meeting, I thanked about 10,000 farmers for helping to make U.S. agriculture a bright spot in our nation’s economy. In the past few decades, U.S. agriculture has become the second most productive sector of the American economy, thanks to...

As we begin the year, I want to share with you a few numbers that help measure USDA’s impact for America’s farmers, ranchers and rural communities over the past three years: To help keep American agriculture profitable and keep farmers on the farm, USDA maintained a strong safety net. Over the past...

Those who know me well know that I am an overzealous networker. I began my USDA experience in summer 2010 as a legislative and public affairs intern in the Rural Development mission area of USDA. While there, I was able to write press releases and blogs that were featured on the USDA website, attend...

Cross posted from the White House blog: With the holiday season in full swing, many of us are thinking about the meals we’ll soon be sharing with family and friends. Whether it’s turkey and egg nog, or latkes, or a New Year’s buffet, food is always a central and cherished part of the festivities. Of...

We’re getting down to the wire. Congress has until December 31, to pass the Payroll Tax Cut or 160 million Americans will see their taxes go up on January 1 st and the typical middle class family will see a tax hike of about $1,000 in 2012. This isn’t a time for politics. This payroll tax cut is...