USDA Blog

This is the sixth installment of the Organic 101 series that explores different aspects of the USDA organic regulations. The National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) is made up of dedicated public volunteers appointed by the Secretary of Agriculture. It advises the National Organic Program (NOP), a...

I remember when I first moved to Alaska, the only vegetable I ate was potatoes. Fruits and veggies were expensive and weren’t even fresh! Up here, produce is shipped or flown up from the lower 48, and by the time it gets to off-road communities it can be nearly rotten. Plus, the nutritional value of...

The Hayman Fire was the largest and most destructive wildfire in Colorado's history. On June 8, 2002, the fire began raging through the Pike National Forest, as well as state, county and private lands, burning a total of 137,760 acres.

I was honored to attend the Sisseton-Wahpeton Oyate Annual Homebuyers Fair on June 20, 2012 in Sisseton, South Dakota. Although the previous evening and early morning rain saturated the ground, it didn’t stop the Sisseton-Wahpeton Oyate from having a successful event. June is homeownership month...

June is Dairy Month and Wisconsin is a national leader in agricultural production with dairy farming being the number one agricultural activity in the State. Wisconsin has more than 76,000 farms dotting its rural landscape, supporting communities, families and businesses of all size.Critical to the...

Today I participated in event with Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel to highlight the challenge of increasing access to healthy foods. It’s a conversation that I and others at USDA have had many times before. From small towns to big cities, people are talking about how to get more fresh, healthy food into...

Today, American agriculture is thriving. Farm income is strong, and we are in the three best years for agricultural exports in history. The prosperity of our agriculture sector is driving the economy forward, creating jobs, and ensuring that Americans have the most affordable food supply of any...

Well into the wee hours of night, for five successive evenings, teams of scientists from across the southeastern United States waited and watched as bats in the Apalachicola National Forest swooped down to feed on their insect prey only to be captured in sheer mist nets. The scientific teams and U.S...

The name and memory of U.S. Forest Service Law Enforcement Officer Kristine Fairbanks has a lot of meaning for the Forest Service law enforcement community and especially to the Pacific Northwest and Alaska regions of the agency.