USDA Press Releases

WASHINGTON, Nov. 1, 2024 – Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced that students eligible for free and reduced price school meals must not be charged junk fees along with the cost of a meal served through the School Breakfast Program and National School Lunch Program. This policy...

WASHINGTON, Oct. 31, 2024 - The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced today that registration is now open for the 101st Agricultural Outlook Forum. The event, titled “Meeting Tomorrow’s Challenges, Today,” will be held at the Crystal City Gateway Marriott on February 27-28, 2025...

ATLANTA, Ga., Oct. 31, 2024 – Today, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and partners announced the launch of the Southern Farmers Financial Association (SFFA), a new cooperatively-owned institution created to increase access to capital for its member member-owners to begin farming or...

To view the announcement on USDA's plan to conduct milk testing to better assess where H5N1 is present, visit: https://www.aphis.usda.gov/news/agency-announcements/usda-builds-actions-protect-livestock-public-health-h5n1-avian-influenza USDA has been responding, in collaboration with State officials...

WASHINGTON, October 30, 2024 – Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced today that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is planning to enhance national surveillance of H5N1, building on measures taken by USDA since the beginning of the avian influenza outbreak. In partnership with state...

WASHINGTON, Oct. 30, 2024 – The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is issuing payments this week to agricultural producers impacted by natural disasters, including $143 million in crop insurance indemnities for Florida producers impacted by Hurricane Milton and about $92 million for livestock...

MANITOWOC, Wis., Oct. 30, 2024 – During a visit to Dramm Corp. today, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Deputy Secretary Xochitl Torres Small announced that the Biden-Harris Administration is making investments that will strengthen American farms and businesses by expanding innovative domestic...

WASHINGTON, Oct. 29, 2024 — Today, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Forest Service announced an investment of more than $265 million to conserve nearly 335,000 acres of ecologically and economically significant forestlands across the nation, in partnership with states across the country...

WASHINGTON, Oct. 29, 2024 – U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Deputy Secretary Xochitl Torres Small today announced that USDA is awarding $39 million in grants to U.S. business owners to increase the availability of domestic biofuels in 18 states and give Americans cleaner, more affordable fuel...

ASHEVILLE, NC, October 25, 2024 – U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today visited Asheville, North Carolina, to hear firsthand from local, state and Tribal officials, emergency managers, food bank staff and volunteers, and impacted producers on the region’s relief and recovery efforts and...