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USDA and FEMA Collaborate in Oregon to Vaccinate America

The Oregon Convention Center (OCC) was not open for usual business, but served a critical function to Oregon residents – one of the largest vaccine sites in the country. Over the past two months, the USDA assisted in providing over 320,000 vaccines in Portland by partnering with FEMA to vaccinate America.

Be Sure to Invite Food Safety to Your Next Pig Roast

Long days, hot temperatures and family gatherings will soon return to America’s backyards. Also returning are traditions, like roasting a whole pig. Roasting a pig requires a lot of planning before, during and after the meal to ensure food safety. Over the past few years, there have been foodborne illness outbreaks associated with pig roasts in several states.

Has Global Agricultural Trade been Resilient under COVID-19?

Last year, as COVID-19 rattled the world economy and disrupted trade flows, agricultural trade remained mostly stable, falling only two percent during the initial wave of infections and lockdowns, before bouncing back and ending the year up 3.5 percent. But the growth in agricultural trade doesn’t mean that trade flows were insulated from the effects of the pandemic. Much of 2020 was in fact shaped by other factors. For instance, 95% of global agricultural trade growth came from China and was driven in part by non-pandemic related factors of increased feed demand, efforts to restock grain reserves, and policy factors. A recent paper by USDA’s Office of the Chief Economist, Has Global Agricultural Trade been Resilient under COVID-19? Findings from an Econometric Assessment (PDF, 1.4 MB) (Arita et al.), suggests that while agricultural trade remained stable at the aggregate level, a deeper empirical analysis reveals there were still significant disruptions due to the pandemic.

As Big as Texas: Youth Opportunities in Agriculture

What’s the first thing that comes to mind when you say agriculture? If it’s a farm, then you’re right, but there’s so much more to agriculture these days. This week, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) co-hosted a virtual Youth Summit with Prairie View A&M University to let Texas K-12 students, educators, and youth-serving organizations discover the endless learning and career opportunities in agriculture.

Market Insights and Resources to Help Producers Celebrate National Beef Month

To be competitive in today’s marketplace, U.S. cattle producers and everyone in the supply chain need reliable data to make informed decisions. USDA provides in-depth market data through the Livestock Mandatory Reporting (LMR) program, which delivers critical market intelligence on price trends, as well as supply and demand conditions.

Composting Uneaten Food: An Interview with Frank Franciosi from the U.S. Composting Council

In 2018, only 2.6 million tons of food scraps were composted, compared to 35 million tons that went into landfills, according to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). What are organizations doing to increase composting in the United States? In observance of International Compost Awareness Week (May 2-8), this interview features insights with Frank Franciosi, executive director of the U.S. Composting Council.