Rural Development

The Tongass National Forest is the largest national forest in the country, and constitutes 85 percent of the land mass in Southeast Alaska. No doubt, land management issues in Southeast were a main topic of discussion at the Tribal Collaboration Meeting held in Ketchikan on May 4 th.

Business owners and managers around the world like to save money. Electricity, natural gas, and water are three utilities that can drain a bank account fast. N-K Properties, Inc., a car wash business, based in Yankton, South Dakota wanted to improve the bottom line. The car wash business is a very...

Rural America has great potential in helping the U.S. meet the future energy demand by deploying alternative energy and energy efficiency sources and practices, so says U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Under Secretary for Rural Development, Dallas Tonsager, who visited the Pacific Northwest National...

Indiana State Office staff members of Natural Resources Conservation Service, Farm Service Agency, Rural Development, and the Risk Management Agency gathered in Indianapolis earlier this week to commemorate the 150 th anniversary of the Department of Agriculture. Following a luncheon, “Women in...

How does a community, business owner, tourist attraction, farmer, homeowner go on after the disastrous 2011 Missouri River flood? At a news conference on May 17, the message was clear: it took determination, community strength and perseverance. With great pride, communities and businesses announced...

Walking through AGCO’s campus in Jackson, Minn., almost feels like walking through a small city. There are large buildings, busy people heading in different directions, vehicles humming up and down roads and the constant buzz of activity and production. If AGCO was its own city, it’d be growing...

Great things continue to happen as America moves forward in developing an “all of the above” strategy to become more energy independent. For example, an agreement was signed between aviation industry leaders and Midwest stakeholders to develop and commercialize sustainable biofuels. USDA will act as...

Mississippi staff recently commemorated the 150th anniversary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture and its work on behalf of agriculture, rural America and people throughout the country and world who benefit from the work of the agency. Mississippi agencies USDA Rural Development (RD), National...

Last week, USDA’s Center for Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships led a webinar to share with local faith and community leaders opportunities to partner with USDA to help those in need in their communities. This webinar was the first in a series entitled, Together We Can. The series aims to...

I had the distinct pleasure of visiting the birthplace of former Agriculture Secretary Henry A. Wallace during a recent trip to Iowa. In fact, my tour of the farm near Orient in south central Iowa happened to be May 15, the day the USDA celebrated its 150 th anniversary. Wallace was Secretary of the...