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December 2020

Growing Connections Across USDA for Innovation in Food Safety and Nutrition

Though our celebrations may be smaller and closer to home this holiday season, food will still be the centerpiece of many festivities. In a year where we’re trying our best to keep ourselves and our loved ones healthy, the safety and nutrition of our food is more important to our well-being than ever.

Bee Better Certification Program is Buzzing on U.S. Farms, Local Grocers

Bees are a lifeline for farms producing the world’s fruits, vegetables, nuts and other nutrient-rich foods. Bees pollinate billions of dollars’ worth of crops and play an essential role in our food supply. Pollinators are responsible for one in every three bites of food we eat and contribute more than $15 billion to our nation's crop values each year.

Stepping Outside the Classroom to Learn Lessons for Life

Stop by any trailhead or boat landing on a national forest or grassland and take a moment to ask folks to explain the origins of their love for the outdoors. You will likely hear people return time and again to some formative experience they had in grade school. For some, the smell of the pine brings them back to camping with a cub scout troop. For others, getting their hands dirty stirs memories of a favorite teacher’s class garden.

Innovative Finance for National Forests Grant Program Fosters New Ideas, Partnerships

The USDA Forest Service is charged with caring for 193 million acres of the nation’s forests and grasslands and solving some of the most complex land management challenges. Across the country, forests densely packed with trees are at high risk of catastrophic wildfire as well as insect and disease outbreaks that could impact ecosystem health for generations to come.

AskUSDA: An Improved and Streamlined Customer Experience

Now more than ever, people expect to have a good experience when interacting with companies or organizations. Whether the interaction stems from a question, the desire to provide feedback, or an inquiry about services, a good customer experience is built on good customer service. In its simplest form, customer experience works to understand the entire end-to-end experience in order to enhance each interaction, better understand a customer’s needs, and leverage learnings to improve service.