Rural America

This post is part of the Science Tuesday feature series on the U.S. Department of Agriculture blog. Check back each week as we showcase stories and news from the agency’s rich science and research portfolio. Rural America is often portrayed in Hollywood as an idyllic place where kids can run free...

Rural communities will play a critical role in the nation's economic recovery, said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack in Omaha, Nebraska on January 28, 2011. Vilsack pointed out that producers learned well about the dangers of debt during the 1980s’ farm crisis and took heed, which has placed them...

Recently I had the honor to participate in the 2011 American Sheep Industry Conference. It made me feel proud to participate as a representative of USDA, as a public servant; talking, listening and learning from sheep and goat producers as well as other stakeholders in the food, livestock and...

Last night I had the privilege of attending President Obama’s State of the Union speech. In it, he laid out some of the challenges America faces moving forward as we compete with nations across the globe to win the future. The President’s vision is simple. We need to be a nation that makes, creates...

Cross posted from the White House blog: At President Obama’s direction, the U.S Department of Agriculture (USDA) is working hard to unleash the power of America’s innovators and entrepreneurs to build a green energy economy. By producing renewable energy – especially biofuels – America’s farmers...

Small businesses are the backbone of this country. They employ nearly half of the workers in rural America and are an integral part of the American economy. Today, Congress will vote on whether or not to repeal this new law, just as its benefits are beginning to reach rural Americans. Repeal of the...

Recent news tells us that the American economy is continuing to move in the right direction, creating private sector jobs for twelve months in a row. The health care law signed by President Obama last year, the Affordable Care Act, has done its part to increase economic certainty in rural America by...

Cross-posted from the White House Blog where you can also find posts from other top Administration Officials on the importance of the DREAM Act. From 2000 to 2006, while I was Governor of Iowa, approximately 60 percent of the total population increase in the state was directly attributable to...

Each year our agency, USDA’s Economic Research Service, produces a six-page brochure packed with information on social and economic conditions in rural areas of the nation. This information is particularly useful for agencies that develop policies and programs to assist rural areas. We recently...

It was nice to once again experience the sounds, smells, and activity at the New Mexico State Fair – where “every day is a holiday.” Accompanied by some of my USDA staff, rode on the 4-H float in the NM State Fair Parade. Along the three mile parade route down Central Ave, we greeted spectators and...