USDA

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia United States Department of Agriculture United States Department of Agriculture United States Department of Agriculture Seal of the Department of Agriculture executive department responsible for developing and executing U.S. federal government policy on farming, agriculture, and food. It aims to meet the needs of farmers and ranchers, promote agricultural trade and production, work to assure food safety, protect natural resources, foster rural communities and end hunger in the United States and abroad. The head of the department is the Secretary of Agriculture, who is a member of the Cabinet. The current Secretary is Tom Vilsack. History Logo of the USDA Agency overview Formed Preceding agency Jurisdiction Headquarters February 15, 1889 Agricultural Division Federal government of the United States 1301 Independence Avenue, S.W., Washington, D.C. 38°53′12″N 77°01′47″W / 38.88667°N 77.02972°W / 38.88667; -77.02972 Employees Annual budget Agency executives 105,778 (June 2007) US$95 billion (2009) Thomas J. Vilsack, Secretary of Agriculture Kathleen Merrigan, Deputy Secretary of Agriculture Child agency Website www.usda.gov Click here The United States Department of Agriculture (informally the Agriculture Department or USDA) is the United States federal The United States had a largely agrarian economy early in its history. Officials in the federal government had long sought new and improved varieties of seeds, plants, and animals for importation to the United States. In 1836 Henry Leavitt Ellsworth, a Yale-educated attorney interested in improving agriculture, became Commissioner of Patents, a position within the Department of State. He soon began collecting and distributing new varieties of seeds and plants through members of the Congress and agricultural societies. In 1839 Congress established the Agricultural Division within the Patent Office and allotted $1,000 for "the collection of agricultural statistics and other agricultural purposes." Ellsworth’s interest in aiding agriculture was evident in his annual reports that called for a public depository to preserve and distribute the various new seeds and plants, a clerk to collect agricultural statistics, the preparation of statewide reports about crops in different regions, and the application of chemistry to agriculture. Henry Leavitt Ellsworth’s agricultural focus earned him the sobriquet of "The Father of the Department of Agriculture." In 1849 the Patent Office was transferred to the newly created Department of the Interior. In the ensuing years, agitation for a separate bureau of agriculture within the 1 From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia department or a separate department devoted to agriculture kept recurring. On May 15, 1862, President Abraham Lincoln established the independent Department of Agriculture to be headed by a Commissioner without Cabinet status.[1] Lincoln called it the "people’s department." In the 1880s, varied interest groups were lobbying for Cabinet representation. Business interests sought a Department of Commerce and Industry. Farmers tried to raise the Department of Agriculture to Cabinet rank. In 1887, the House of Representatives and Senate passed bills giving Cabinet status to the Department of Agriculture and Labor, but farm interests objected to the addition of labor, and the bill was killed in conference committee. Finally, on February 9, 1889, President Grover Cleveland signed a bill into law elevating the Department of Agriculture to Cabinet level. In 1887, the Hatch Act provided for the federal funding of agricultural experiment stations in each state. The Smith-Lever Act of 1914 then funded cooperative extension services in each state to teach agriculture, home economics and related subjects to the public. With these and similar provisions, the USDA reached out to every county of every state. During the Great Depression, farming remained a common way of life for millions of Americans. The Department of Agriculture was crucial to providing concerned persons with the assistance that they needed to make it through this difficult period, helping to ensure that food continued to be produced and distributed to those who needed it, assisting with loans for small landowners, and contributing to the education of the rural youth. In this way, the Department of Agriculture became a source of comfort as people struggled to survive in rural areas. Allegations have been made that throughout the agency’s history it discriminated against African-American farmers, denying them loans and access to other programs well into the 1990s.[2] The effect of this discrimination was the near total elimination of African-American farmers in the United States.[3] In 1999, the USDA settled a class action lawsuit alleging discrimination against African-American farmers. Today, many of the programs concerned with the distribution of food and nutrition to people of America and providing nourishment as well as nutrition education to those in United States Department of Agriculture need are run and operated under the USDA Food and Nutrition Service. USDA also concerns itself with assisting farmers and food producers with the sale of crops and food on both a domestic and on the world market. The USDA also plays an important role in overseas aid programs by providing surplus foods to developing countries. This aid can go through USAID, foreign governments, international bodies such as WFP, or approved non profit organizations. The Agriculture Act of 1949, section 416 (b) and Agricultural Development and Trade Act of 1954 (also known as Public Law 480 or just PL 480) provides the legal basis of such actions. Operating units Active The headquarters of the USDA are on the National Mall at Washington, D.C. USDA building (photo taken in 1934) • Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) • National Organic Program (NOP) • Agricultural Research Service (ARS) • National Agricultural Library (NAL) • Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS)[4] • Animal Care (AC) 2 From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia • Biotechnology Regulatory Services (BRS) • International Services (IS) • Plant Protection and Quarantine (PPQ) • Veterinary Services • Wildlife Services Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion (CNPP) Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service (CSREES) Economic Research Service (ERS) Farm Service Agency (FSA) Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) Forest Service (FS) Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration (GIPSA) National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) National Finance Center (NFC) Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) Risk Management Agency (RMA) Rural Development (RD) • Office of Community Development (OCD) • Rural Housing Service (RHS) United States Department of Agriculture • 1890, 1891, 1897, 1906 Meat Inspection Act • 1906: Pure Food and Drug Act • 1914: Cotton Futures Act • 1916: Federal Farm Loan Act • 1917: Food Control and Production Acts • 1921: Packers and Stockyards Acts • 1922: Grain Futures Act • 1922: National Agricultural Conference • 1923: Agricultural Credits Act • 1933: Agricultural Adjustment Act (AAA) • 1933: Farm Credit Act • 1935: Resettlement Administration • 1936: Soil Conservation and Domestic Allotment Act • 1937: Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act • 1941: National Victory Garden Program • 1941: Steagall Amendment • 1946: Farmers Home Administration • 1946: National School Lunch Act PL 79-396 • 1946: Research and Marketing Act • 1948: Hope-Aiken Agriculture Act PL 80-897 • 1956: Soil Bank Program authorized • 1957: Poultry Inspection Act • 1947: Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act PL 80-104 • 1949: Agricultural Act PL 81-439 (Section 416 (b)) • 1954: Food for Peace Act PL 83-480 • 1954: Agricultural Act PL 83-690 • 1956: Mutual Security Act PL 84-726 • 1957: Poultry Products Inspection Act PL 85-172 • 1958: Food Additives Amendment PL 85-929 • 1958: Humane Slaughter Act • 1958: Agricultural Act PL 85-835 • 1961: Agricultural Act PL 87-128 • 1964: Agricultural Act PL 88-297 • 1964: Food Stamp Act PL 88-525 • 1964: Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act Extension PL 88-305 • 1965: Appalachian Regional Development Act • 1965: Food and Agriculture Act PL 89-321 • 1966: Child Nutrition Act PL 89-642 • 1967: Wholesome Meat Act PL 90-201 • 1968: Wholesome Poultry Products Act PL 90-492 • 1970: Agricultural Act PL 91-524 • 1972: Federal Environmental Pesticide Control Act PL 92-516 • • • • • • • • • • • • • • Inactive • Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation Service (ASCS) • Animal Damage Control (renamed Wildlife Services) Related legislation The Secretary of Agriculture’s office is located in the Jamie L. Whitten Building. Important legislation setting policy of the USDA includes the: 3 From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia • 1970: Environmental Quality Improvement Act • 1970: Food Stamp Act PL 91-671 • 1972: Rural Development Act • 1972: Rural Development Act Reform 3.31 • 1972: National School Lunch Act Amendments (Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children) PL 92-433 • 1973: Agriculture and Consumer Protection Act PL 93-86 • 1974: Safe Drinking Water Act PL 93-523 • 1977: Food and Agriculture Act PL 95-113 • 1985: Food Security Act PL 99-198 • 1996: Federal Agriculture Improvement and Reform Act PL 104-127 • 1996: Food Quality Protection Act PL 104-170 • 2000: Agriculture Risk Protection Act PL 106-224 • 2002: Farm Security and Rural Investment Act PL 107-171 • 2008: Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 PL 110-246 United States Department of Agriculture See also • • • • • • • • • Agriculture in the United States Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion Farm Credit System Germplasm Resources Information Network Graduate School, USDA MyPyramid Rural Energy for America Program (REAP) U.S. Department of Agriculture Administration Building U.S. Department of Agriculture South Building References [1] 12 Stat. 387, now codified at 7 U.S.C. § 2201. [2] General Accounting Office,USDA Problems Continue to Hinder the Timely Processing of Discrimination Complaints, January 1999 [3] Brooks, Roy L.. Atonement and Forgiveness: A New Model for Black Reparations. University of California Press. pp. 7-8. ISBN 0-520-24813-9. [4] APHIS Organization. USDA. Retrieved on 2009-03-09. [5] ^ "USDA Awards $35 Million for Energy Efficiency, Renewable Energy". Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. United States Department of Energy. September 3, 2008. http://apps1.eere.energy.gov/news/ news_detail.cfm/news_id=11958. Retrieved on February 15, 2009. Energy efficiency, renewable energy and global warming Further information: Energy efficiency, Global warming, and Renewable energy The USDA announced on August 27, 2008 that 639 farms and rural businesses in 43 states and the Virgin Islands have been selected to receive $35 million in grants and loan guarantees for renewable energy systems and energy efficiency improvements. While many of the awards typically go towards more energy-efficient grain dryers, the USDA notes that a farm in Iowa will use its grant to replace a propane heating system with a geothermal heating system, while a firm in Louisiana will purchase energy-efficient electric motors for an irrigation well.[5] The grants and loans are awarded through the Renewable Energy Systems and Energy Efficiency Improvements Program of the USDA Rural Development office. The program was created by Section 9006 of the 2002 Farm Bill and will be expanded next year under the 2008 Farm Bill.[5] External links • United States Department of Agriculture and public domain policy. • USDA National Nutrient Database • National Archives document of the USDA’s origins • Report: USDA Regulatory Policy Has Been ’Hijacked’ by Agribusiness Industry - July 23, 2004. • USDA releases 180-Day Report on Avian Influenza efforts and supplemental spending H5N1 efforts. • USDA Economic Research Service State Fact Sheets • Coordinates: 38°53′14″N 77°01′48″W / 38.887125°N 77.030007°W / 38.887125; -77.030007 4 From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia • USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference Search By Food • USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference Nutrient Lists Search By Nutrient United States Department of Agriculture • USDA Awards $97 M for Renewable Energy Projects • USDA Bets the Farm on Animal ID Program • USDA Nutrition Information Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Department_of_Agriculture" Categories: 1889 establishments, United States Department of Agriculture, Agriculture ministries This page was last modified on 21 May 2009, at 21:04 (UTC). 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