View source for United States Department of Agriculture

{{Short description|Department of the US government}}
{{redirect|USDA}}
{{Distinguish|FDA}}
{{Use American English|date=July 2022}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2022}}
{{Infobox government agency
| agency_name     = United States<br />Department of Agriculture
| seal            = {{#invoke:InfoboxImage|InfoboxImage|image={{{image|{{#invoke:Wikidata|claim|P158}}}}}|size=175px|sizedefault=frameless|upright=1|alt=Seal of the {{wikidata|title}}|suppressplaceholder=yes}}
| seal_width      = 175
| seal_caption    = Seal of the USDA
| logo            = {{#invoke:InfoboxImage|InfoboxImage|image={{{image|{{#invoke:Wikidata|claim|P154}}}}}|size=140px|sizedefault=frameless|upright=1|alt=Logo of the {{wikidata|title}}|suppressplaceholder=yes}}
| logo_width      = 140
| logo_caption    = Logo of the USDA
| picture         = {{#invoke:InfoboxImage|InfoboxImage|image={{{image|{{#invoke:Wikidata|claim|P41}}}}}|size=175px|sizedefault=frameless|upright=1|alt=Flag of the {{wikidata|title}}|suppressplaceholder=yes}}
| picture_caption = Flag of the USDA
| formed          = {{date|{{wikidata|property|P571}}|MDY}}<br />Cabinet status: February 15, 1889
| preceding1      = Agricultural Division
| dissolved       = 
| superseding     = 
| jurisdiction    = [[Federal government of the United States]]
| headquarters    = {{wikidata|qualifier|linked|P159|P276}}<br />{{wikidata|qualifier|P159|P670}} {{wikidata|qualifier|linked|P159|P669}}, S.W., {{wikidata|property|linked|edit|P159}}
| coordinates     = {{coord|38|53|17|N|77|1|48|W|type:landmark_region:US-DC|display=inline,title}}
| employees       = {{wikidata|property|edit|P1128}}
| budget          = [[United States dollar|US$]]213 billion (2024)<ref name='budget'/>
| chief1_name     = [[Brooke Rollins]]
| chief1_position = [[United States Secretary of Agriculture|Secretary]]
| chief2_name     = [[Stephen Vaden]]
| chief2_position = [[United States Deputy Secretary of Agriculture|Deputy Secretary]]
| parent_agency   = 
| website         = {{official URL}}
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The '''United States Department of Agriculture''' ('''USDA''') is an [[United States federal executive departments|executive department]] of the [[Federal government of the United States|United States federal government]] that aims to meet the needs of [[commercial farming]] and livestock food production, promotes agricultural trade and production, works to assure [[food safety]], protects natural resources, fosters rural communities and works to end hunger in the United States and internationally. It is headed by the [[secretary of agriculture]], who reports directly to the [[president of the United States]] and is a member of the president's [[Cabinet of the United States|Cabinet]]. The current secretary is [[Brooke Rollins]], who has served since February 13, 2025.
[[File: 12072012 - 31 - United States Department of Agriculture.JPG|thumb|[[Jamie L. Whitten Building]], the headquarters of the U.S. Department of Agriculture]]
Approximately 71% of the USDA's $213&nbsp;billion budget goes towards nutrition assistance programs administered by the [[Food and Nutrition Service]] (FNS). The largest component of the FNS budget is the [[Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program]] (formerly known as the 'Food Stamp' program), which is the cornerstone of USDA's nutrition assistance.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.fns.usda.gov/sites/default/files/HISTORY%20OF%20FNS.pdf |title=History of FNS |website=usda.gov |access-date=July 1, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160912141202/http://www.fns.usda.gov/sites/default/files/HISTORY%20OF%20FNS.pdf |archive-date=2016-09-12 }}</ref> The [[United States Forest Service]] is the largest agency within the department, which administers [[List of national forests of the United States|national forests]] and [[national grassland]]s that together comprise about 25% of [[federal lands]].

==Overview==
The USDA is divided into eight distinct mission areas, each of which have at least one agency dedicated to the theme of the mission area:

Farm Production and Conservation (FPAC)
* FPAC Business Center
* [[Farm Service Agency]] (FSA)
* [[Natural Resources Conservation Service]] (NRCS)
* [[Risk Management Agency]] (RMA)

Food, Nutrition, and Consumer Services (FNCS)
* [[Food and Nutrition Service]] (FNS)

Food Safety (FS)
* [[Food Safety and Inspection Service]] (FSIS)

Marketing and Regulatory Programs (MRP)
* [[Agricultural Marketing Service]] (AMS)
* [[Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service]] (APHIS)

Natural Resources and the Environment (NRE)
* [[United States Forest Service|Forest Service]] (FS)

Research, Education, and Economics (REE)
* [[Agricultural Research Service]] (ARS)
* [[Economic Research Service]] (ERS)
* [[National Agricultural Statistics Service]] (NASS)
* [[National Institute of Food and Agriculture]] (NIFA)
* Office of the Chief Scientist

Rural Development (RD)
* [[Rural Business-Cooperative Service]] (RBS)
* [[Rural Housing Service]] (RHS)
* [[Rural Utilities Service]] (RUS)

Trade and Foreign Agriculture Affairs (TFAA)
* [[Foreign Agricultural Service]] (FAS)
* U.S. Codex Office

<ref>{{cite web|title=USDA Agencies|url=https://www.usda.gov/about-usda/general-information/mission-areas |website=USDA}}</ref><ref name="Org Chart 9/24/24">{{cite web |title=USDA Organization Chart |url=https://www.usda.gov/sites/default/files/documents/usda-organization-chart.pdf |publisher=U.S. Department of Agriculture |access-date=May 28, 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250412194126/https://www.usda.gov/sites/default/files/documents/usda-organization-chart.pdf |archive-date=April 12, 2025 |language=American English |format=.pdf |date=September 24, 2024}}</ref>

Many of the programs concerned with the distribution of food and nutrition to people of the [[United States]] and providing [[nourishment]] as well as [[Nutrition Education|nutrition education]] to those in need are run by the [[Food and Nutrition Service]]. Activities in this program include the [[Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program]], which provides healthy food to over 40&nbsp;million low-income and homeless people each month.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.fns.usda.gov/snap/supplemental-nutrition-assistance-program |title=FNS Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) |date=2013-06-21 |access-date=2013-12-29}}</ref> USDA is a member of the [[United States Interagency Council on Homelessness]],<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.usich.gov/member_agency |title=United States Interagency Council on Homelessness |website=USICH |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120424055302/http://www.usich.gov/member_agency |archive-date=2012-04-24 }}</ref> where it is committed to working with other agencies to ensure these mainstream benefits have been accessed by those experiencing homelessness.

The USDA also is concerned with assisting farmers and food producers with the sale of crops and food on both the domestic and world markets. It plays a role in overseas aid programs by providing surplus foods to developing countries. This aid can go through [[United States Agency for International Development|USAID]], foreign governments, international bodies such as [[World Food Program]], or approved nonprofits. The [[Agricultural Act of 1949]], section 416 (b) and [[Agricultural Trade Development and Assistance Act of 1954]], also known as [[Food for Peace]], provides the legal basis of such actions. The USDA is a partner of the [[World Cocoa Foundation]].

==History==
{{Further|History of agriculture in the United States}}
[[File:Harvey Wiley, Chief Chemist of the Department of Agriculture’s Division of Chemistry (cropped).jpg|thumb|[[Harvey Washington Wiley]], Chief Chemist of the Department of Agriculture's Division of Chemistry (third from the right) with his staff in 1883|229x229px]]
The standard history is Gladys L. Baker, ed., ''Century of Service: The first 100 years of the United States Department of Agriculture'' (U.S. Department of Agriculture, 1963).<ref>It is not copyright and is [https://archive.org/details/centuryofservice00unit online here for free download.].</ref>

===Origins in the Patent Office===
Early in its history, the [[Economic history of the United States|American economy]] was largely [[agrarian economy|agrarian]]. Officials in the federal government had long sought new and improved varieties of seeds, plants and animals for import into the United States. In 1829, by request of [[James Smithson]] out of a desire to further promulgate and diffuse scientific knowledge amongst the American people, the [[Smithsonian Institution]] was established, though it did not incorporate agriculture.<ref>{{cite web |title=Agricultural Research Service |url= https://permanent.fdlp.gov/gpo90633/HistoryofHumanNutritionResearch.pdf|website=USDA |access-date= 1 November 2017}}</ref> In 1837, [[Henry Leavitt Ellsworth]] became [[Commissioner for Patents (US)|Commissioner of Patents]] in the [[United States Department of State|Department of State]]. He began collecting and distributing new varieties of seeds and plants through members of the [[United States Congress|Congress]] and local agricultural societies. In 1839, [[United States Congress|Congress]] established the Agricultural Division within the [[United States Patent and Trademark Office|Patent Office]] and allotted $1,000 for "the collection of agricultural statistics and other agricultural purposes."<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=algT-6f3Y3wC&q=In+1839,+Congress+established+the+Agricultural+Division+within+the+Patent+Office+and+allotted+$1,000+for+%22the+collection+of+agricultural+statistics+and+other+agricultural+purposes&pg=PA1|title=History of Human Nutrition Research in the U. S. Department of Agriculture|publisher=Government Printing Office|isbn=978-0-16-094384-3|language=en}}</ref> Ellsworth's interest in aiding agriculture was evident in his annual reports that called for a public depository to preserve and distribute the various new seeds and plants, a clerk to collect agricultural statistics, the preparation of statewide reports about crops in different regions, and the application of chemistry to agriculture.<ref name="Preliminary Inventory 1977. Page 7">''Preliminary Inventory, Issues 187–195''. National Archives publication, 1977. Page 7.</ref> [[Henry Leavitt Ellsworth|Ellsworth]] was called the "Father of the Department of Agriculture".<ref>{{cite web|title=Ellsworth, Henry Leavitt, 1791–1858 – Social Networks and Archival Context|url=https://snaccooperative.org/ark:/99166/w6s75kkx|access-date=2020-09-19|website=snaccooperative.org}}</ref>

In 1849, the [[United States Patent and Trademark Office|Patent Office]] was transferred to the newly created [[United States Department of the Interior|Department of the Interior]]. In the ensuing years, agitation for a separate bureau within the department or a separate department devoted to agriculture kept recurring.<ref name="Preliminary Inventory 1977. Page 7"/>

===Formation===
[[File:Main Building of the Department of Agriculture, Washington, D.C. (no original caption) - NARA - 512817.jpg|thumb|right|The first [[United States Department of Agriculture Building|Department of Agriculture Building]] on the National Mall around 1895|231x231px]]
[[File:US Department of Agriculture- Jamie L. Whitten Building (53832135595).jpg|thumb|234x234px|The [[Jamie L. Whitten Building]] in [[Washington D.C.]] is the current USDA headquarters.]]
On May 15, 1862, [[Abraham Lincoln]] established the independent Department of Agriculture through the [[Morrill Land-Grant Acts|Morrill Act]] to be headed by a commissioner without [[Cabinet of the United States|Cabinet]] status. Staffed by only eight employees, the department was charged with conducting research and development related to "agriculture, [[rural development]], [[aquaculture]] and human nutrition in the most general and comprehensive sense of those terms".<ref>{{Cite web |title=7 U.S. Code § 2201 – Establishment of Department |url=https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/7/2201 |access-date=2024-02-07 |website=LII / Legal Information Institute |language=en}}</ref> Agriculturalist [[Isaac Newton (agriculturalist)|Isaac Newton]] was appointed to be the first commissioner.<ref>12 Stat. 387, now codified at [https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/07/2201- 7 U.S.C. § 2201].</ref> Lincoln called it the "people's department", since over half of the nation, at the time, was directly or indirectly involved in [[agriculture]] or [[agribusiness]].<ref>{{cite news |last1=Salvador |first1=Ricardo |last2=Bittman |first2=Mark |title=Opinion: Goodbye, U.S.D.A., Hello, Department of Food and Well-Being |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/03/opinion/usda-agriculture-secretary-biden.html |access-date=10 December 2020 |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=4 December 2020}}</ref>

In 1868, the department moved into the new [[United States Department of Agriculture Building|Department of Agriculture Building]] in Washington, designed by famed D.C. architect [[Adolf Cluss]]. Located on the [[National Mall]] between 12th Street and 14th SW, the department had offices for its staff and the entire width of the Mall up to B Street NW to plant and experiment with plants.<ref>Evening Star – June 18, 1868 – page 4 – column 4</ref>

In the 1880s, varied advocacy groups were lobbying for Cabinet representation. Business interests sought a [[Department of Commerce and Industry]], and farmers tried to raise the Department of Agriculture to Cabinet rank. In 1887, the [[United States House of Representatives|House of Representatives]] and [[United States Senate|Senate]] passed separate bills giving Cabinet status to the Department of Agriculture and Labor, but the bill was defeated in [[conference committee]] after farm interests objected to the addition of labor. Finally, in 1889 the Department of Agriculture was given cabinet-level status.<ref>25 Stat 659 (February 9, 1889)</ref>

In 1887, the [[Hatch Act of 1887|Hatch Act]] provided for the federal funding of [[agricultural experiment station]]s in each state. The [[Smith-Lever Act of 1914]] then funded [[cooperative extension service]]s in each state to teach agriculture, [[home economics]], and other subjects to the public. With these and similar provisions, the USDA reached out to every county of every state.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Danbom |first1=David B. |title=The Agricultural Experiment Station and Professionalization: Scientists' Goals for Agriculture |journal=Agricultural History |date=1986 |volume=60 |issue=2 |pages=246–255 |jstor=3743443}} </ref>

===New Deal era===
By the year 1933, the department was well established in Washington and very well known in rural America. In the agricultural field the picture was different. Statisticians created a comprehensive data-gathering arm in the Division of Crop and Livestock Estimates. Secretary Henry Wallace, a statistician, further strengthened the expertise by introducing sampling techniques. Professional economists ran a strong Bureau of Agricultural Economics. Most important was the agricultural experiment station system, a network of state partners in the land-grant colleges, which in turn operated a large field service in direct contact with farmers in practically every rural county. The department worked smoothly with a nationwide, well-organized pressure group, the [[American Farm Bureau Federation]]. It represented the largest commercial growers before Congress.<ref>David M. Kennedy, ''Freedom from fear: The American people in depression and war, 1929–1945'' (1999). p 203.</ref>

As late as the [[Great Depression]], farm work occupied a fourth of Americans. Indeed, many young people who moved to the cities in the prosperous 1920s returned to the family farm after the depression caused unemployment after 1929. The USDA helped ensure that food continued to be produced and distributed to those who needed it, assisted with loans for small landowners, and provided technical advice. Its [[Bureau of Home Economics]], established in 1923, published shopping advice and recipes to stretch family budgets and make food go farther.<ref name="Square Meal">{{cite book |last1=Ziegelman |first1=Jane |last2=Coe |first2=Andrew |title=A Square Meal: A Culinary History of the Great Depression |date=2016 |publisher=HarperCollins |isbn=978-0-06-221641-0 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/squaremealculina0000zieg }}</ref> In the late 1940s, the Pollinating Insect Research unit was established as a part of the alfalfa seed production unit to study bees and other pollinators to improve pollination management.<ref>{{Cite web |title=About Us : USDA ARS |url=https://www.ars.usda.gov/pacific-west-area/logan-ut/pollinating-insect-biology-management-systematics-research/docs/about-us/ |access-date=2025-02-26 |website=www.ars.usda.gov}}</ref>

=== Modern times ===
On August 27, 2018, the USDA announced it would be providing U.S. farmers with a farm aid package totaling $4.7&nbsp;billion in direct payments to American farmers.<ref>{{cite web |title=Agriculture Department Will Pay $4.7 Billion To Farmers Hit In Trade War |url= https://www.npr.org/2018/08/28/642525831/agriculture-dept-will-pay-4-7-billion-to-farmers-hit-in-trade-war|website=npr |access-date= 27 March 2023 }}</ref>

On 7 February 2022, the USDA announced the Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities, a $1 billion program that will test and verify the benefits of climate-friendly agricultural practices.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Erickson |first1=Britt |title=USDA commits $1 billion to climate-smart agriculture |url=https://cen.acs.org/food/agriculture/USDA-commits-1-billion-climate/100/i6 |work=[[Chemical & Engineering News]]}}</ref>

In October 2022, the USDA announced a $1.3 billion debt relief program for about 36,000 farmers who had fallen behind on loan payments or facing foreclosures. The provisions in the [[Inflation Reduction Act of 2022]] set aside $3.1 billion to help such farmers with high-risk operations caused by USDA-backed loans.<ref>{{cite news |last=Pitt |first=David |date=2022-10-18 |title=USDA announces $1 billion debt relief for 36,000 farmers |url=https://apnews.com/article/biden-health-covid-iowa-us-department-of-agriculture-a520df60c52a704ec98098d56cf2ea18 |work=[[Associated Press]]}}</ref>

In February 2025, the [[Second presidency of Donald Trump|Trump administration]] fired multiple probationary employees in the USDA, including multiple researchers in the post-doctoral research fellowship in the Agricultural Research Service, a division dedicated to using science to protect the nation's food supply.<ref>{{Cite news |title=A military vet and a scientist were securing America's food system. Trump fired them |url=https://www.npr.org/2025/02/20/nx-s1-5301150/trump-federal-employees-fired-veteran-food-agriculture?utm_source=firefox-newtab-en-us |access-date=2025-02-26 |work=NPR |language=en}}</ref> The USDA said in a statement on February 14, 2025 that it is implementing "an aggressive plan to optimize its workforce by eliminating positions that are no longer necessary."<ref>{{Cite news |last=Treisman |first=Rachel |date=2025-02-19 |title=The USDA fired staffers working on bird flu. Now it's trying to reverse course |url=https://www.npr.org/2025/02/19/nx-s1-5302019/bird-flu-usda-firings-reversed |access-date=2025-02-26 |work=NPR |language=en}}</ref> However, a few days later they made another statement stating they had fired people in "several positions supporting" highly pathogenic [[avian influenza]], and was "working to swiftly rectify the situation and rescind" the termination letters given to these people.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Cerullo |first1=Megan |last2=Picchi |first2=Aimee |title=USDA says it is trying to rehire bird flu experts the agency accidentally fired |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/usda-accidentally-fired-bird-flu-experts-rehire/ |access-date=February 20, 2025 |work=CBS News |date=February 19, 2025}}</ref>

In March 2025, the USDA cut two federal programs that provided about $1 billion in funding to schools and food banks to buy food directly from local farms, ranchers and producers.<ref>{{cite news |last=Pichee |first=Aimee |date=2025-03-13 |title=USDA cancels $1 billion in funding for schools and food banks to buy food from local suppliers |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/usda-cancels-local-food-purchasing-food-banks-school-meals/ |work=[[CBS News]]}}</ref>

==Organization and Component Staff Level==

USDA's offices and agencies are listed below, with full-time equivalent staff levels according to the estimated FY2023 appropriation, as reported in USDA's FY2024 Congressional Budget Justification.<ref name="budget">{{cite web |url=https://www.usda.gov/sites/default/files/documents/2024-usda-budget-summary.pdf |title=United States Department of Agriculture FY 2024 Budget Summary |publisher=U.S. Department of Agriculture |access-date=2023-08-05 |archive-date=September 29, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230929014145/https://www.usda.gov/sites/default/files/documents/2024-usda-budget-summary.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref>

{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! colspan="2" scope="col" | Component
! scope="col" | FTE
|-
! rowspan="17" scope="row" | Staff Offices
[[United States Secretary of Agriculture|Secretary of Agriculture]]

[[United States Deputy Secretary of Agriculture|Deputy Secretary of Agriculture]]
|Office of Safety, Security and Protection
|58
|-
|Agriculture Buildings and Facilities
|63
|-
|Departmental Administration
|342
|-
|Hazardous Materials Management
|5
|-
|Office of Budget and Program Analysis
|58
|-
|Office of Civil Rights
|168
|-
|Office of Communications
|57
|-
|Office of Ethics
|28
|-
|[[National Appeals Division|Office of Hearings and Appeals]]
|81
|-
|Office of Homeland Security
|35
|-
|Office of Inspector General
|430
|-
|Office of Partnerships and Public Engagement
|51
|-
|Office of the Chief Economist
|65
|-
|Office of the Chief Financial Officer
|1,242
|-
|Office of the Chief Information Officer
|1,658
|-
|Office of the General Counsel
|294
|-
|Office of the Secretary
|179
|-
! rowspan="4" scope="row" | Farm Production and Conservation
[[Under Secretary of Agriculture for Farm and Foreign Agricultural Services|Under Secretary for Farm Production and Conservation]]
|[[Farm Service Agency]]
* [[Commodity Credit Corporation]]
|10,188
|-
|[[Risk Management Agency]]
* [[Federal Crop Insurance Corporation]]
|410
|-
|[[Natural Resources Conservation Service]]
|12,184
|-
|Farm Production and Conservation Business Center
|1,683 
|-
! scope="row"| [[USDA Rural Development|Rural Development]]
[[Under Secretary of Agriculture for Rural Development|Under Secretary for Rural Development]]
|[[Rural Housing Service]], [[Rural Business-Cooperative Service]], [[Rural Utilities Service]]
|4,700
|-
! scope="row"| Food, Nutrition, and Consumer Services
[[Under Secretary of Agriculture for Food, Nutrition, and Consumer Services|Under Secretary for Food, Nutrition, and Consumer Services]]
|[[Food and Nutrition Service]]
|1,905
|-
! scope="row" | Food Safety
[[Under Secretary of Agriculture for Food Safety|Under Secretary for Food Safety]]
|[[Food Safety and Inspection Service]]
|8,780
|-
! scope="row"| Natural Resources and Environment
[[Under Secretary of Agriculture for Natural Resources and Environment|Under Secretary for Natural Resources and Environment]]
|[[United States Forest Service|Forest Service]]
|33,270
|-
! rowspan="2" scope="row" | Marketing and Regulatory Programs
[[Under Secretary of Agriculture for Marketing and Regulatory Programs|Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs]]
|[[Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service]]
|8,449
|-
|[[Agricultural Marketing Service]]
|4,132
|-
! rowspan="4" scope="row" | Research, Education, and Economics
[[Under Secretary of Agriculture for Research, Education, and Economics|Under Secretary for Research, Education, and Economics]]
|[[Agricultural Research Service]]
|6,169
|-
|[[National Institute of Food and Agriculture]]
|393
|-
|[[Economic Research Service]]
|329
|-
|[[National Agricultural Statistics Service]]
|890
|-
! scope="row"| [[Under Secretary of Agriculture for Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs]]<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.usda.gov/about-usda/news/press-releases/2017/05/11/secretary-perdue-announces-creation-undersecretary-trade|title=Secretary Perdue Announces Creation of Undersecretary for Trade|access-date=June 16, 2018|archive-date=June 29, 2025|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250629072223/https://www.usda.gov/about-usda/news/press-releases/2017/05/11/secretary-perdue-announces-creation-undersecretary-trade|url-status=dead}}</ref>
|[[Foreign Agricultural Service]]
|841
|-
! colspan="2" scope="row" | Total
| 99,137
|}
[[File:Consumer Reports - product testing - brine test for canned peas (cropped).jpg|thumb|right|A nutrition researcher considers canned peas.|262x262px]]

===Inactive Departmental Services===
* [[Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation Service]] (ASCS) (became part of the [[Farm Service Agency]] in 1994)
* Animal Damage Control (renamed [[Wildlife Services]])
* Soil Conservation Service (SCS) renamed [[Natural Resources Conservation Service]]
* Section of Vegetable Pathology, Division of Botany (1887–90)<ref name="BPISAE">{{cite web|url=https://www.archives.gov/research/guide-fed-records/groups/054.html |title=Records of the Bureau of Plant Industry, Soils, and Agricultural Engineering [BPISAE&#93;: Administrative History |publisher=Archives.gov |access-date=2013-12-29}}</ref>
** Renamed Division of Vegetable Pathology (1890–95)<ref name="BPISAE" />

==Discrimination==
[[File:Black American Protesters Align Outside Lafayette Park Across White House.jpg|alt=Black farmers protest at Lafayette Park across from the White House in Washington, D.C. on September 22, 1997. Protesters are holding-up signs labeled with phrases. "Don't take our land", "Equal Justice is the Law", and more but they are cute off.|thumb|265x265px|Black farmers protested at Lafayette Park across from the White House, on September 22, 1997, against USDA.]]
Allegations have been made that throughout the agency's history its personnel have discriminated against farmers of various backgrounds, denying them loans and access to other programs well into the 1990s.<ref>{{cite web |publisher=General Accounting Office |url=http://www.gao.gov/archive/1999/rc99038.pdf |title=USDA – Problems Continue to Hinder the Timely Processing of Discrimination Complaints |date=January 1999 |access-date=October 16, 2007 |archive-date=February 24, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090224210610/http://www.gao.gov/archive/1999/rc99038.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref> The effect of this discrimination caused a reduction in the number of [[African Americans|African American]] farmers in the United States.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Brooks |first=Roy L. |title=Atonement and Forgiveness: A New Model for Black Reparations |year=2004 |publisher=[[University of California Press]] |isbn=0-520-24813-9 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/atonementforgive0000broo/page/7 7–8] |url=https://archive.org/details/atonementforgive0000broo/page/7 }}</ref> Though [[African Americans|African American]] farmers have been the most hit by discriminatory actions by the USDA, women, [[Native Americans in the United States|Native Americans]], [[Hispanic]]s, and other minorities have experienced discrimination in a variety of forms at the hands of the USDA. The majority of these discriminatory actions have occurred through the [[Farm Service Agency]], which oversees loan and assistance programs to farmers.<ref name="heinonline" />

In response to the [[Supreme Court of the United States|Supreme Court's]] ruling of unconstitutionality of the [[Agricultural Adjustment Act]], [[United States Congress|Congress]] enacted the [[Soil Conservation and Domestic Allotment Act of 1936]], which established the [[Soil Conservation Service]] (SCS) which provided service to private landowners and encouraged subsidies that would relieve soil from excessive farming. The SCS in its early days were hesitant, especially in Southern jurisdictions, to hire Black conservationists. Rather than reaching out to Black students in universities for interviews and job opportunities, students had to reach out for the few opportunities granted to Black conservationists.<ref>Helms, Douglas. "Eroding the Color Line: The Soil Conservation Service and the Civil Rights Act of 1964." ''Agricultural History'', vol. 65, no. 2, Agricultural History Society, 1991, pp. 35–53, <nowiki>http://www.jstor.org/stable/3743706</nowiki>.</ref>

As part of the 1964 [[Civil Rights Act]], the USDA formally ended racial segregation among its staff.<ref name="Johnson2011">{{cite journal|last1=Johnson|first1=Kimberley S.|date=October 2011|title=Racial Orders, Congress, and the Agricultural Welfare State, 1865–1940|journal=Studies in American Political Development|volume=25|issue=2|pages=143–161|doi=10.1017/S0898588X11000095|doi-access=free}}</ref> In the 1999 ''[[Pigford v. Glickman]]'' class-action lawsuit brought by African American farmers, the USDA agreed to a billion-dollar settlement due to its patterns of discrimination in the granting of loans and subsidies to black farmers.<ref name="Johnson2011" /> In 2011, a second round of payouts, ''Pigford II,'' was appropriated by Congress for $1.25 billion, although this payout, far too late to support the many who desperately needed financial assistance during 1999 lawsuit, only comes out to around $250,000 per farmer.<ref>{{cite news|date=3 September 2021|title=United States: Black US Farmers Awaiting Billions in Promised Debt Relief|work=Asia News Monitor|location=Bangkok|id={{ProQuest|2568289864}}}}</ref>

A March 17, 2006 letter from the GAO about the Pigford Settlement indicated that "the court noted that USDA disbanded its Office of Civil Rights in 1983, and stopped responding to claims of discrimination."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.gao.gov/assets/gao-06-469r.pdf |title=GAO-06-469R Pigford Settlement: The Role of the Court-Appointed Monitor |date= |access-date=2022-03-02}}</ref>

===''Pigford v. Glickman''===
{{main|Pigford v. Glickman}}

Following long-standing concerns, black farmers joined a [[class action]] discrimination suit against the USDA filed in federal court in 1997.<ref name="CRS">{{cite web|author1=Tadlock Cowan |author2=Jody Feder |date=14 June 2011|title=The Pigford Cases: USDA Settlement of Discrimination Suits by Black Farmers|url=http://www.nationalaglawcenter.org/wp-content/uploads/assets/crs/RS20430.pdf|access-date=1 December 2011|publisher=Congressional Research Service}}</ref> An attorney called it "the most organized, largest civil rights case in the history of the country."<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/race_relations/jan-june99/farmers_3-2.html |title=PBS The News Hour (1999) |publisher=PBS |access-date=2013-12-29 |archive-date=December 30, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131230234723/http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/race_relations/jan-june99/farmers_3-2.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> Also in 1997, black farmers from at least five states held protests in front of the USDA headquarters in [[Washington, D.C.]]<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=C7QOUqVlu5IC |title=Homecoming: The Story of African-American Farmers |author=Charlene Gilbert |author2=Quinn Eli |publisher=Beacon Press |date=2002 |access-date=2013-12-29|isbn=978-0-8070-0963-5 }}</ref> Protests in front of the USDA were a strategy employed in later years as the black farmers sought to keep national attention focused on the plight of the black farmers. Representatives of the [[National Black Farmers Association]] met with President [[Bill Clinton]] and other administration officials at the [[White House]]. And NBFA's president testified before the [[United States House Committee on Agriculture]].<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FywV4yVN5iIC |title=Treatment of minority and limited resource producers by the U.S. Department of Agriculture: ... |publisher=U.S. G.P.O. |date=Jan 1, 1997 |access-date=2013-12-29|isbn=978-0-16-055410-0 }}</ref>

In ''[[Pigford v. Glickman]]'', U.S. Federal District Court Judge [[Paul L. Friedman]] approved the settlement and consent decree on April 14, 1999.<ref name="CRS" /> The settlement recognized discrimination against 22,363 black farmers, but the NBFA would later call the agreement incomplete because more than 70,000 were excluded.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jLKMFlLhCx0C |title=Where Rebels Roost... Mississippi Civil Rights Revisited |author=M. Susan Orr Klopfer |author2=Fred Klopfer |author3=Barry Klopfer |publisher=Lulu Press |date=2005 |access-date=2013-12-29|isbn=978-1-4116-4102-0 }}{{self-published inline|date=June 2023}}</ref> Nevertheless, the settlement was deemed to be the largest-ever civil rights class action settlement in American history. Lawyers estimated the value of the settlement to be more than $2&nbsp;billion.<ref name="nytimes1">{{cite news|date=April 15, 1999|title=Judge Approves Settlement for Black Farmers|newspaper=New York Times|agency=ASSOCIATED PRESS|url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C05E0D9143BF936A25757C0A96F958260|access-date=2013-12-29}}</ref> Some farmers would have their debts forgiven.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=1046266 |title=Black Farmers Lawsuit |publisher=NPR |date=March 2, 1999 |access-date=2013-12-29}}</ref> Judge Friedman appointed a monitor to oversee the settlement.<ref name="nytimes1" /> Farmers in Alabama, Mississippi, Arkansas, and Georgia were among those affected by the settlement.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1355/is_2_97/ai_58411585 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120711212707/http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1355/is_2_97/ai_58411585 |archive-date=2012-07-11 |title=Southern farmers among those affected by court case}}</ref>

The NBFA's president was invited to testify before congress on this matter numerous times following the settlement, including before the [[United States Senate Committee on Agriculture]] on September 12, 2000, when he testified that many farmers had not yet received payments and others were left out of the settlement. It was later revealed that one DoJ staff "general attorney" was unlicensed while she was handling black farmers' cases.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0205/021105lb.htm |title=Unlicensed Hire |author=Daniel Pulliam |website=GOVEXEC.com |date=February 11, 2005 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050416092038/http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0205/021105lb.htm |archive-date=2005-04-16 }}</ref> NBFA called for all those cases to be reheard.<ref name="nationalblackfarmersassociation.org"/> The ''[[Chicago Tribune]]'' reported in 2004 that the result of such longstanding USDA discrimination was that black farmers had been forced out of business at a rate three times faster than white farmers. In 1920, 1 in 7 U.S. farmers was African-American, and by 2004 the number was 1 in 100. USDA spokesman Ed Loyd, when acknowledging that the USDA loan process was unfair to minority farmers, had claimed it was hard to determine the effect on such farmers.<ref>{{cite news|first= Andrew |last=Martin |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/2004/08/08/usda-discrimination-accused-of-withering-black-farmers/ |title=USDA discrimination accused of withering black farmers |work=Chicago Tribune |date=2004-08-08 |access-date=2013-12-29}}</ref>

In 2006 the [[Government Accountability Office]] (GAO) issued a report highly critical of the USDA in its handling of the black farmers cases.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5362406 |title=Black Farmers Follow Up on USDA Grievances|publisher=National Public Radio |date=25 Apr 2006 |access-date=2013-12-29}}</ref> NBFA continued to lobby Congress to provide relief. NBFA's [[John Boyd (farmer)]] secured congressional support for legislation that would provide $100&nbsp;million in funds to settle late-filer cases. In 2006 a bill was introduced into the House of Representatives and later the Senate by Senator [[George Felix Allen]].<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/09/29/AR2006092900152.html |title=Allen Unveils Bill to Help Black Farmers |agency=Associated Press |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=September 29, 2006 |access-date=2013-12-29}}</ref> In 2007 Boyd testified before the [[United States House Committee on the Judiciary]] about this legislation.<ref name="nationalblackfarmersassociation.org">{{cite web |title=About us |url= https://www.nationalblackfarmersassociation.org/about_us|website=National Black Farmers Association |access-date= 27 March 2023 |url-status=usurped |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230510033642/https://www.nationalblackfarmersassociation.org/about_us |archive-date= May 10, 2023 }}</ref> As the organization was making headway by gathering Congressional supporters in 2007 it was revealed that some USDA Farm Services Agency employees were engaged in activities aimed at blocking Congressional legislation that would aid the black farmers.<ref>{{cite web |date=August 8, 2007 |url=http://obama.senate.gov/press/070808-usda_improper_lobbying/ |title=Obama: USDA Should Not Undermine Legislation to Help Black Farmers |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081111011207/http://obama.senate.gov/press/070808-usda_improper_lobbying/ |archive-date=2008-11-11 }}</ref> [[Barack Obama]], then a U.S. Senator, lent his support to the black farmers' issues in 2007.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://thehill.com/campaign-2008/as-champion-of-black-farmers-obama-could-win-southern-votes-2007-09-19.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071011004824/http://thehill.com/campaign-2008/as-champion-of-black-farmers-obama-could-win-southern-votes-2007-09-19.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=October 11, 2007 |title=The Hill newspaper (2007) |publisher=Thehill.com |access-date=2013-12-29}}</ref> A bill co-sponsored by Obama passed the Senate in 2007.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://obama.senate.gov/news/071217-senate_votes_to_1/ |title=Senate Votes to Reopen Black Farmers' Lawsuits |date=December 17, 2007 |agency=Associated Press |author=Ben Evans |access-date=2013-04-26 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081030221920/http://obama.senate.gov/news/071217-senate_votes_to_1/ |archive-date=2008-10-30 }}</ref>

In early June 2008 hundreds of black farmers, denied a chance to have their cases heard in the ''Pigford'' settlement, filed a new lawsuit against USDA.<ref>{{cite news |author=Ben Evans |agency=Associated Press |url=http://www.foxnews.com/wires/2008Jun04/0,4670,BlackFarmersLawsuit,00.html |title=Black farmers file new suit against USDA |publisher=FOXNews.com |date=June 4, 2008 |access-date=2013-12-29}}</ref> The Senate and House versions of the black farmers bill, reopening black farmers discrimination cases, became law in June 2008.<ref name="BenEvans1">{{cite news|author=Ben Evans|date=2008-06-28|title=Reopening black farmers' suits could cost billions|newspaper=USA Today|agency=Associated Press|url=https://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2008-06-28-1736680923_x.htm|access-date=2013-12-29}}</ref> Some news reports said that the new law could affect up to 74,000 black farmers.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=17722777 |title=Help Ahead for Black Farmers |publisher=NPR |date=December 31, 2007 |access-date=2013-12-29}}</ref> In October 2008, the GAO issued a report criticizing the USDA's handling of discrimination complaints.<ref>{{cite news |last=Etter |first=Lauren |url=http://s.wsj.net/article/SB122472492972861173.html |title=USDA Faulted Over Minority Farmers |newspaper=The Wall Street Journal |date=2008-10-23 |access-date=2013-12-29 |archive-date=June 26, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130626070624/http://s.wsj.net/article/SB122472492972861173.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> The GAO recommended an oversight review board to examine civil rights complaints.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/10/22/AR2008102203198.html |title=USDA Action On Bias Complaints Is Criticized |newspaper=The Washington Post |date= 2008-10-23 |access-date=2013-12-29 |first=Darryl |last=Fears}}</ref>

After numerous public rallies and an intensive NBFA member lobbying effort, Congress approved and Obama signed into law in December 2010 legislation that set aside $1.15&nbsp;billion to resolve the outstanding black farmers' cases. NBFA's John W. Boyd Jr., attended the bill-signing ceremony at the White House.<ref name="nationalblackfarmersassociation.org"/> As of 2013, 90,000 African-American, Hispanic, female and Native American farmers had filed claims. It was reported that some had been found fraudulent, or transparently bogus. In [[Maple Hill, North Carolina|Maple Hill]], North Carolina by 2013, the number of successful claimants was four times the number of farms with 1 out of 9 African-Americans being paid, while "claimants were not required [by the USDA] to present documentary evidence that they had been unfairly treated or had even tried to farm." Lack of documentation is an issue complicated by the USDA practice of discarding denied applications after three years.<ref>{{cite news |title=U.S. Opens Spigot After Farmers Claim Discrimination |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/26/us/farm-loan-bias-claims-often-unsupported-cost-us-millions.html |access-date=April 26, 2013 |newspaper=The New York Times |date=April 25, 2013 |author=Sharon LaFraniere |quote=...claimants were not required to present documentary evidence that they had been unfairly treated or had even tried to farm.}}</ref>

=== Keepseagle v. Vilsack ===
In 1999, [[Native Americans in the United States|Native American farmers]], discriminated in a similar fashion to black farmers, filed a [[Class action|class-action]] lawsuit against the USDA alleging [[loan discrimination]] under the [[Equal Credit Opportunity Act|ECOA]] and the [[Administrative Procedure Act (United States)|APA]]. This case relied heavily on its predecessor, [[Pigford v. Glickman]], in terms of the reasoning it set forth in the lawsuit.<ref name="heinonline">''Garcia v. Vilsack: A Policy and Legal Analysis of a USDA Discrimination Case'', ''HeinOnline'', <nowiki>https://heinonline-org.ezproxy1.lib.asu.edu/HOL/P?h=hein.crs/crsmthmatal0001&i=11</nowiki>.</ref> Eventually, a settlement was reached between the plaintiffs and the USDA to the amount of up to $760 million, awardable through individual [[damages]] claims.<ref>{{cite web|title=Native American Farmer and Rancher Class Action Settlement – Keepseagle v. Vilsack |website=Natural Resources Conservation Service Louisiana |url=https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/detail/la/newsroom/?cid=nrcs141p2_015776 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200525003913/https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/detail/la/newsroom/?cid=nrcs141p2_015776 |archive-date=2020-05-25}}</ref> These claims could be used for monetary relief, debt relief, and/or tax relief. The filing period began June 29, 2011 and lasted 180 days.<ref name="autogenerated2">"Keepseagle settlement filing period open". Delta Farm Press, July 26, 2011. advance-lexis-com.ezproxy1.lib.asu.edu/api/document?collection=news&id=<nowiki>urn:contentItem:53F3-DGH1-DY7H-500C-00000-00&context=1516831</nowiki>. Accessed November 28, 2021.</ref> Track A claimants would be eligible for up to $50,000, whereas Track B claimants would be eligible for up to $250,000 with a higher standard of proof.<ref name="autogenerated2"/>

=== Garcia v. Vilsack ===
{{Main|Garcia v. Vilsack}}

In 2000, similar to [[Pigford v. Glickman]], a [[Class action|class-action]] lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on behalf of Hispanic farmers alleging that the USDA discriminated against them in terms of credit transactions and disaster benefits, in direct violation of [[Equal Credit Opportunity Act|ECOA]]. As per the settlement, $1.33 billion is available for compensation in awards of up to $50,000 or $250,000, while an additional $160 million is available in [[debt relief]].<ref name="heinonline"/>

=== ''Love v. Vilsack'' ===
{{Main|Love v. Vilsack}}

In 2001, similar to [[Garcia v. Vilsack]], a [[Class action|class-action]] lawsuit was filed in the same court alleging [[discrimination]] on the basis of gender. A Congressional response to the lawsuit resulted in the passing of the [[Equality for Women Farmers Act]], which created a system that would allow for allegations of gender discrimination to be heard against the USDA and enable claims for damages.<ref name="heinonline"/>

== Environmental justice initiatives ==
In their 2012 [[environmental justice]] strategy, the [[U.S. Department of Agriculture]] (USDA) stated an ongoing desire to integrate environmental justice into its core mission and operations. In 2011, [[United States Secretary of Agriculture|Secretary of Agriculture]] [[Tom Vilsack]] emphasized the USDA's focus on [[Environmental justice]] (EJ) in rural communities around the United States, as well as connecting with [[Native Americans in the United States|Indigenous Tribes]] and ensuring they understand and receive their environmental rights. USDA does fund programs with social and environmental equity goals; however, it has no staff dedicated solely to EJ.

=== Background ===
On February 16, 1994, [[Bill Clinton|President Clinton]] issued [[Executive Order 12898]], "Federal Actions to Address Environmental Justice in Minority Populations and Low-Income Populations."<!-- AutoEd: rm unicode ctrl char w/no win-1252 mapping, intent unknown --> [[Executive Order 12898]] requires that achieving EJ must be part of each federal agency's mission. Under [[Executive Order 12898]] federal agencies must:

# enforce all health and environmental statutes in areas with minority and low-income populations;
# ensure [[public participation]];
# improve research and data collection relating to the health and environment of minority and low-income populations; and
# identify differential patterns of [[Resource consumption|consumption of natural resources]] among minority and low-income populations.
The Executive Order also created an Interagency Working Group (IWG) consisting of 11 heads of departments and agencies.<ref>{{cite web|title=Summary of Executive Order 12898 – Federal Actions to Address Environmental Justice in Minority Populations and Low-Income Populations|date=February 22, 2013|url=https://www.epa.gov/laws-regulations/summary-executive-order-12898-federal-actions-address-environmental-justice |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130426083151/http://www2.epa.gov/laws-regulations/summary-executive-order-12898-federal-actions-address-environmental-justice |url-status=dead |archive-date=April 26, 2013 |website=Environmental Protection Agency}}</ref>

==== 2012 Environmental Justice Strategy ====
On February 7, 2012, the USDA released a final Environmental Justice Strategic Plan identifying new and updated goals and performance measures beyond what USDA identified in a 1995 EJ strategy that was adopted in response to E.O. 12898.<ref name="ftn10">USDA, Strategic Plan, http://www.dm.usda.gov/hmmd/FinalUSDAEJSTRATScan_1.pdf {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120226184928/http://www.dm.usda.gov/hmmd/FinalUSDAEJSTRATScan_1.pdf|date=2012-02-26}}</ref> Generally, USDA believes its existing technical and financial assistance programs provide solutions to environmental inequity, such as its initiatives on education, [[Food Deserts in the United States|food deserts]], and economic development in impacted communities.

Natural Resources and Environment Under Secretary Harris Sherman is the political appointee generally responsible for USDA's EJ strategy, with Patrick Holmes, a senior staffer to the Under Secretary, playing a coordinating role. USDA has no staff dedicated solely to EJ.<ref name="ftn68">Holmes interview.</ref>

=== EJ Initiatives in Tribal Communities ===

==== Tribal development ====
USDA has had a role in implementing [[Michelle Obama]]'s ''[[Let's Move]]'' campaign in tribal areas by increasing [[Bureau of Indian Education]] schools' participation in federal nutrition programs, by developing community gardens on tribal lands, and developing tribal food policy councils.<ref name="ftn38">USDA, Strategic Plan at 6.</ref>

More than $6.2 billion in [[USDA Rural Development|Rural Development]] funding has been allocated for community infrastructure in [[Indian country]] and is distributed via 47 state offices that altogether cover the entire continental [[United States]], [[Hawaii]], and [[Alaska]].<ref name="ftn68" /> Such funding has been used for a variety of reasons:

===== Rural housing=====

*single-family housing direct loans
*loan guarantees loans for very-low-income homeowners
*financing for affordable rental housing
*financing for farm laborers and their families

===== Community facilities=====

*child and senior care centers
*emergency services
*healthcare institutions
*educational institutions
*tribal administration buildings

===== Business and cooperative programs=====

*increased access to [[broadband]] connections
*tribal workplace development and employment opportunities
*sustainable renewable energy development
*regional food systems
*financing and technical assistance for entrepreneurs, including loans and lending
*increased access to capital through Tribal [[Community development financial institution|CDFIs]]

===== Utilities=====

*increased access to 21st century telecommunications services
*reliable and affordable water and wastewater systems
*financing electric systems
*integrating electric [[Smart grid|smart-grid]] technologies<ref>{{cite web|title=Collaborating for Prosperity With American Indians and Alaska Natives|url=https://permanent.fdlp.gov/gpo129049/508_RD_TribalReport_2019.pdf |website=Federal Depository Library Program}}</ref>

==== Tribal relations ====
In 1997, the [[U.S. Forest Service]] (USFS) published a resource guide aimed at helping USFS officials with developing and maintaining relations with different tribal governments. To that end, and in coordination with the Forest Service's 4*point [[American Indian and Alaska Native|American Indian]]/[[Alaska Natives|Alaska Native]] policy, the resource guide discusses how to:

# Maintain a governmental relationship with Federally Recognized tribal governments.
# Implement Forest Service programs and activities honoring Indian treaty rights, and fulfill legally mandated trust responsibilities to the extent that they are determine applicable to National Forest System lands.
# Administer programs and activities to address and be sensitive to traditional Native religious beliefs and practices.
# Provide research, transfer of technology, and technical assistance to Indian governments.<ref name=":1">{{Cite book|last=Mitchell|first=Joe|title=Forest Service National Resource Guide to American Indian and Alaska Native Relations|publisher=USFS|year=1997}}</ref>
The USFS works to maintain good governmental relationships through regular intergovernmental meetings, acknowledgement of pre*existing tribal sovereignty, and a better general understanding of tribal government, which varies from tribe to tribe. Indian treaty rights and trust responsibilities are honored through visits to tribal neighbors, discussions of mutual interest, and attempts to honor and accommodate the legal positions of Indians and the federal government. Addressing and demonstrating sensitivity to Native religious beliefs and practices includes walking through Native lands and acknowledging cultural needs when implementing USFS activities. Providing research, technology, and assistance to Indian governments is shown through collaboration of ecological studies and sharing of various environmental technologies, as well as the inclusion of traditional Native practices in contemporary operations of the USFS.<ref name=":1" />

The Intertribal Technical Assistance Network works to improve access of tribal governments, communities and individuals to USDA technical assistance programs.<ref name="ftn50">{{cite web |publisher=USDA |title=Progress Report |url=http://www.dm.usda.gov/hmmd/FinalEJImplementationreport_1.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120226175225/http://www.dm.usda.gov/hmmd/FinalEJImplementationreport_1.pdf |archive-date=2012-02-26}}</ref>

==== Tribal Services/Cooperatives ====
The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service provides APHIS Veterinary Services, which serve the tribal community by promoting and fostering safe animal trade and care. This includes prevention of pests and disease from herd and fisheries as well as surveys for diseases on or near Native American lands that can affect traditionally hunted wildlife.<ref>APHIS Veterinary Services : Helping Native Americans Protect Their Livestock and Fisheries. United States Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, 2012.</ref>{{full citation needed|date=April 2023}} The APHIS also provides Wildlife Services, which help with wildlife damage on Native lands. This includes emergency trainings, outreach, consultation, internship opportunities for students, and general education on damage reduction, livestock protection, and disease monitoring.<ref>&nbsp; APHIS Wildlife Services : Controlling Wildlife Damage on Native American Lands. United States Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, 2012.</ref>{{full citation needed|date=April 2023}}

Meanwhile, the Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) is exploring a program to use meat from bisons raised on tribal land to supply AMS food distribution programs to tribes.<ref name="ftn68" />

=== Other EJ Initiatives ===

==== Technical and financial assistance ====
The NRCS Strike Force Initiative has identified impoverished counties in Mississippi, Georgia and Arkansas to receive increased outreach and training regarding USDA assistance programs. USDA credits this increased outreach with generating a 196 percent increase in contracts, representing more than 250,000 acres of farmland, in its Environmental Quality Incentives Program.<ref name="ftn50" /> In 2001, NRCS funded and published a study, "Environmental Justice: Perceptions of Issues, Awareness and Assistance," focused on rural, Southern "Black Belt" counties and analyzing how the NRCS workforce could more effectively integrate environmental justice into impacted communities.<ref name="ftn46">USDA, NRCS EJ Guidance, https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/stelprdb1045586.pdf {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210308182350/https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/stelprdb1045586.pdf |date=March 8, 2021 }}.</ref>

The [[Farm Services Agency]] in 2011 devoted $100,000 of its Socially Disadvantaged Farmers and Ranchers program budget to improving its outreach to counties with persistent poverty.<ref name="ftn47">USDA, Progress Report at 9, http://www.dm.usda.gov/hmmd/FinalEJImplementationreport_1.pdf {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120226175225/http://www.dm.usda.gov/hmmd/FinalEJImplementationreport_1.pdf|date=2012-02-26}}</ref> USDA's Risk Management Agency has initiated education and outreach to low-income farmers regarding use of biological controls, rather than pesticides, for pest control.<ref name="ftn68" /> The Rural Utilities Service administers water and wastewater loans, including [[SEARCH Grants]] that are targeted to financially distressed, small rural communities and other opportunities specifically for Alaskan Native villages.<ref name="ftn59">{{cite web|publisher=USDA|title=Water and Environmental Programs Fact Sheet |url=http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/SupportDocuments/RUS%20Fact%20Sheet%201806%20new.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120625211242/http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/SupportDocuments/RUS%20Fact%20Sheet%201806%20new.pdf|archive-date=2012-06-25|access-date=2012-07-02}}</ref><ref>USDA, Water and Environmental Programs Website, http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/UWEP_HomePage.html {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120621185928/http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/UWEP_HomePage.html|date=2012-06-21}}</ref>

==== Mapping ====
USFS has established several Urban Field Stations, to research urban natural resources' structure, function, stewardship, and benefits.<ref name="ftn54">USDA, Strategic Plan at 6, http://www.dm.usda.gov/hmmd/FinalUSDAEJSTRATScan_1.pdf {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120226184928/http://www.dm.usda.gov/hmmd/FinalUSDAEJSTRATScan_1.pdf|date=2012-02-26}}</ref> By mapping urban tree coverage, the agency hopes to identify and prioritize EJ communities for urban forest projects.<ref name="ftn54" />

Another initiative highlighted by the agency is the Food and Nutrition Service and Economic Research Service's Food Desert Locator.<ref name="ftn55">{{cite web|title=USDA ERS – Food Access Research Atlas|url=http://www.ers.usda.gov/data-products/food-access-research-atlas|access-date=2019-09-23|website=www.ers.usda.gov}}</ref> The Locator provides a spatial view of food deserts, defined as a low-income census tract where a substantial number or share of residents has low access to a supermarket or large grocery store. The mapped deserts can be used to direct agency resources to increase access to fresh fruits and vegetables and other food assistance programs.<ref name="ftn56">Velde interview.</ref>

==Meat and poultry hotline==
The '''USDA Meat and Poultry hotline''' is a toll-free [[user assistance]] [[hotline]] for consumers to answer inquiries about the safe storage, handling, and preparation of meat, poultry, and egg products that can be reached at 1-888-MPHotline (1-888-674-6854).<ref name="USDAHotline2024"/><ref>{{cite web |title=USDA Meat & Poultry Hotline |url=http://www.fsis.usda.gov/food_safety_education/usda_meat_%26_Poultry_hotline/index.asp |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040905112629/http://www.fsis.usda.gov/food_safety_education/usda_meat_%26_Poultry_hotline/index.asp |url-status=dead |archive-date=September 5, 2004 |publisher=USDA |access-date=30 April 2024 |date=5 September 2004 }}</ref> The Hotline also responds to other issues related to the mission of USDA's [[Food Safety and Inspection Service]] (FSIS), which is to ensure that commercial supply of meat, poultry, and egg products is safe, wholesome, and correctly labeled and packaged.<ref name="USDAHotline2024">{{cite web |title=What is the United States Department of Agriculture' Meat and Poultry Hotline? |url=https://ask.usda.gov/s/article/What-is-the-USDA-Meat-and-Poultry-Hotline |publisher=USA |access-date=30 April 2024 |date=Mar 22, 2024}}{{source-attribution}}</ref> The hotline operates year-round on weekdays excluding federal holidays (except Thanksgiving) from 10 AM to 6 PM PT. Food safety specialists with home economics, nutrition, and food technology backgrounds staff it.<ref name="USDAMPH">{{cite web |title=USDA Meat and Poultry Hotline |url=https://www.fsis.usda.gov/food-safety/safe-food-handling-and-preparation/usda-meat-and-poultry-hotline |publisher=USDA |access-date=30 April 2024 |date=Oct 5, 2023}}{{source-attribution}}</ref> The hotline began on July 1, 1985, and has answered over 2 million calls to date in 2024.<ref name="USDAMPH"/> The hotline added Spanish support in 2002 and added two hours in April 2017.<ref name="USDAMPH"/><ref name="Meat2017">{{cite news |title=USDA expands 'Meat and Poultry Hotline' hours |url=https://www.meatpoultry.com/articles/16133-usda-expands-meat-and-poultry-hotline-hours |access-date=30 April 2024 |work=Meat+Poultry |date=April 4, 2017 |language=en}}</ref> The hotline can help detect public health threats and has been attributed with increasing American's awareness of foodborne bacteria and how to avoid them.<ref>{{cite web |title=Making the Connection: Activity Report of the USDA Meat and Poultry Hotline for 2000 About the Meat and Poultry Hotline |url=http://www.fsis.usda.gov/Frame/FrameRedirect.asp?main=http://www.fsis.usda.gov/OA/pubs/hot2000/index.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041017162850/http://www.fsis.usda.gov/Frame/FrameRedirect.asp?main=http://www.fsis.usda.gov/OA/pubs/hot2000/index.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=2004-10-17 |publisher=USDA FSIS |access-date=30 April 2024 |date=March 2002}}</ref><ref name="FSIS2003">{{cite web |title=USDA Hotline: A Food Safety Resource for Millions |url=http://www.fsis.usda.gov/Frame/FrameRedirect.asp?main=http://www.fsis.usda.gov/oa/news/2003/hotline_holiday.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041017163030/http://www.fsis.usda.gov/Frame/FrameRedirect.asp?main=http://www.fsis.usda.gov/oa/news/2003/hotline_holiday.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=2004-10-17 |website=USDA FSIS |access-date=30 April 2024 |location=Washington, DC |date=November 18, 2003}}</ref>

The USDA also offers online text support via "Ask Karen".<ref name="Meat2017"/>

== Other ==

=== Private sector relationships ===

Part of the USDA's functions includes promoting the economic development of the agricultural sector. In their 2022 strategic plan, they pledged:<blockquote>To maintain a competitive agricultural sector, USDA will support farmers and ranchers' ability to start and maintain profitable businesses as well as offer financial support to producers affected by natural disasters. Furthermore, USDA's research agencies will continue to introduce high-performance plants, animals, and integrated management options that increase the efficiency of farming practices. Lastly, USDA will also provide tools to producers so that they are well-positioned to secure a share of a growing market for agricultural products.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://www.usda.gov/sites/default/files/documents/usda-strategic-plan-2018-2022.pdf |title=USDA Strategic Plan FY2018-2022 |date=May 2018 |publisher=United States Department of Agriculture |pages=15 |language=en |chapter=Strategic Goal 2 |access-date=2024-06-07}}</ref>{{Better source needed|reason=A secondary, historical source would supplement this citation (or make it unnecessary)|date=July 2024}}</blockquote>The USDA formalized a relationship with the [[Global Food Safety Initiative]] (GFSI) in 2018.  GFSI is a private organization where members of the [[Consumer Goods Forum]] have control over benchmarking requirements in recognition of [[technical standards|private standards]] for food safety. In August 2018, USDA achieved Technical Equivalence against Version 7.1 of the GFSI Benchmarking Requirements for their Harmonized [[Good agricultural practice|GAP]] Plus + certification programme,<ref>{{cite web |title=GFSI Announces USDA AMS GAP Plus + Certification Programme Achieves Technical Equivalence |url=https://mygfsi.com/news_updates/gfsi-announces-usda-ams-gap-plus-certification-programme-achieves-technical-equivalence/ |website=mygfsi.com/ |publisher=GFSI }}{{Dead link|date=November 2025 |bot=InternetArchiveBot }}</ref> where Technical Equivalence is limited to government-owned food safety certification programmes. This is misaligned with U.S. Government Policy and [[Office of Management and Budget|OMB Circular No. A-119]]<ref>{{cite web |title=OMB Circular A-119: Federal Participation in the Development and Use of Voluntary Consensus Standards and in Conformity Assessment Activities |url=https://bidenwhitehouse.archives.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/revised_circular_a-119_as_of_1_22.pdf |website=[[White House]] |publisher=The White House}}</ref> which instructs its agencies to adopt [[technical standards|voluntary consensus standards]] before relying upon&nbsp;[[technical standards|industry standards]] (private standards) or developing government standards.

Harmonized [[Good agricultural practice|GAP]] Plus+ Standard (V. 3.0) was published in February 2021<ref>{{cite web |title=Harmonized GAP Plus+ Standard |url=https://www.ams.usda.gov/sites/default/files/media/Harmonized_GAP_Plus_Standard_Version3.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210413022225/https://www.ams.usda.gov/sites/default/files/media/Harmonized_GAP_Plus_Standard_Version3.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-date=April 13, 2021 |website=ams.usda.gov |publisher=USDA}}</ref> with reference to GFSI Guidance Document Version 2020, Part III, ignoring reference to [[international standards]] and technical specifications [[ISO 22000]] and ISO T/S 22002-3 Prerequisite Programmes for Farming. The [[USDA]] exception to  [[Office of Management and Budget|OMB Circular No. A-119]] might be attributed to [[lobbying]] and influence of [[Consumer Goods Forum]] members in Washington, D.C.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Doering |first1=Christopher |title=Where the dollars go: Lobbying a big business for large food and beverage CPGs |url=https://www.fooddive.com/news/where-the-dollars-go-lobbying-a-big-business-for-large-food-and-beverage-c/607982/ |website=fooddive.com |publisher=Food Dive}}</ref> In November 2021, GFSI announced its Technical Equivalence was under strategic review explaining the assessment has raised concerns across many stakeholders.<ref>{{cite web |title=GFSI Launches a Strategic Review of its Technical Equivalence Programme |url=https://mygfsi.com/news_updates/gfsi-launches-a-strategic-review-of-its-technical-equivalence-programme/ |website=mygfsi.com |publisher=GFSI}}</ref>

==== Dairy ====
{{Further|Dairy Management Inc.}}
The USDA monitors American dairy production and markets, for which it has a Dairy Board and a marketing branch known as [[Dairy Management Inc.|Dairy Management Incorporated]] (DMI).<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Freeman |first=Andrea |date=December 2013 |title=The Unbearable Whiteness of Milk: Food Oppression and the USDA |url=https://scholarship.law.uci.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1113&context=ucilr |journal=UC Irvine Law Review |volume=3 |issue=4 |pages=1251–1279 |via=[[University of California, Irvine]]}}</ref> Furthermore, the USDA collaborates with United Dairy Industry Association (UDIA), the National Fluid Milk Processor Promotion Board for market information on the industry.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://www.ams.usda.gov/sites/default/files/media/2005%20-%20Dairy%20Report%20to%20Congress.pdf |title=Report to Congress on the National Dairy Promotion and Research Program and the National Fluid Milk Processor Promotion Program |date=2006-07-01 |publisher=United States Department of Agriculture |pages=6 |language=en}}</ref>

=== COVID-19 relief ===
During the [[COVID-19 pandemic in the United States|COVID-19 pandemic]], Congress allocated funding to the USDA to address the disturbances rippling through the agricultural sector. On April 17, 2020, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture [[Sonny Perdue]] announced the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program:<ref>{{cite news|date=April 17, 2020|title=USDA Announces Coronavirus Food Assistance Program|publisher=United States Department of Agriculture|url=https://www.usda.gov/about-usda/news/press-releases/2020/04/17/usda-announces-coronavirus-food-assistance-program|access-date=November 23, 2021}}</ref>

{{blockquote|The American food supply chain had to adapt, and it remains safe, secure, and strong, and we all know that starts with America's farmers and ranchers. This program will not only provide immediate relief for our farmers and ranchers, but it will also allow for the purchase and distribution of our agricultural abundance to help our fellow Americans in need.}}

This provided $16&nbsp;billion for farmers and ranchers, and $3&nbsp;billion to purchase surplus produce, dairy, and meat from farmers for distribution to charitable organizations.<ref name="USDA-Coronavirus">{{cite web|title=USDA Announces Coronavirus Food Assistance Program|url=https://www.usda.gov/about-usda/news/press-releases/2020/04/17/usda-announces-coronavirus-food-assistance-program|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200519132829/https://www.usda.gov/media/press-releases/2020/04/17/usda-announces-coronavirus-food-assistance-program|archive-date=2020-05-19|access-date=2020-04-30|website=www.usda.gov|language=en}}</ref> As part of the [[Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act]] (CARES) and the [[Families First Coronavirus Response Act]] (FFCRA), USDA has up to an additional $873.3&nbsp;million available in Section 32 funding to purchase a variety of agricultural products for distribution to food banks, $850&nbsp;million for food bank administrative costs and USDA food purchases.<ref name="USDA-Coronavirus" />

==Related legislation==
{{see also|United States farm bill}}
<!-- This section is linked from [[List of United States federal legislation]] -->
Important legislation setting policy of the USDA includes the:<ref>{{Cite web |title=Laws and Regulations |url=https://www.usda.gov/about-usda/policies-and-links/laws-and-regulations |access-date=2023-10-19 |website=www.usda.gov |language=en}}</ref>

{{Div col|colwidth=40em}}
* 1890, 1891, 1897, 1906 [[Meat Inspection Act]]
* 1906: [[Pure Food and Drug Act]]
* 1914: [[Cotton Futures Act]]
* 1916: [[Federal Farm Loan Act]]
* 1917: [[Food Control and Production Acts]]
* 1921: [[Packers and Stockyards Act]]
* 1922: [[Grain Futures Act]]
* 1922: [[National Agricultural Conference]]
* 1923: [[Agricultural Credits Act]]
* 1930: [[Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act]]
* 1930: [[Foreign Agricultural Service Act]]
* 1933: [[Agricultural Adjustment Act]] (AAA)
* 1933: [[Farm Credit Act]]
* 1935: [[Resettlement Administration]]
* 1936: [[Soil Conservation and Domestic Allotment Act]]
* 1937: [[Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act]]
* 1941: [[National Victory Garden Program]]
* 1941: [[Steagall Amendment]]
* 1946: [[Farmers Home Administration]]
* 1946: [[National School Lunch Act]] PL 79-396
* 1946: [[Research and Marketing Act]]
* 1947: [[Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act]] PL 80-104
* 1948: [[Hope-Aiken Agriculture Act]] PL 80-897
* 1949: [[Agricultural Act of 1949|Agricultural Act]] PL 81-439 (Section 416 (b))
* 1954: [[Food for Peace]] Act PL 83-480
* 1954: [[Agricultural Act of 1954|Agricultural Act]] PL 83-690
* 1956: [[Agricultural Act of 1956|Soil Bank Program authorized]]
* 1956: [[Mutual Security Act]] PL 84-726
* 1957: [[Federal Plant Pest Act of 1957|Federal Plant Pest Act]] PL 85-36
* 1957: [[Poultry Products Inspection Act]] PL 85-172
* 1958: [[Food Additives Amendment]] PL 85-929
* 1958: [[Humane Slaughter Act]]
* 1958: [[Agricultural Act of 1958|Agricultural Act]] PL 85-835
* 1961: [[Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act of 1961|Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act]] PL 87-128
* 1964: [[Agricultural Act of 1964|Agricultural Act]] PL 88-297
* 1964: [[Food Stamp Act]] PL 88-525
* 1964: [[Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act Extension]] PL 88-305
* 1965: [[Appalachian Regional Development Act]]
* 1965: [[Food and Agriculture Act]] PL 89-321
* 1966: [[Child Nutrition Act]] PL 89-642
* 1967: [[Wholesome Meat Act]] PL 90-201
* 1968: [[Wholesome Poultry Products Act]] PL 90-492
* 1970: [[Agricultural Act of 1970|Agricultural Act]] PL 91-524
* 1972: [[Federal Environmental Pesticide Control Act]] PL 92-516
* 1970: [[Environmental Quality Improvement Act]]
* 1970: [[Food Stamp Act]] PL 91-671
* 1972: [[Rural Development Act]]
* 1972: [[Rural Development Act Reform 3.31]]
* 1972: [[National School Lunch Act Amendments]] (Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for [[Women, Infants and Children]]) PL 92-433
* 1973: [[Agriculture and Consumer Protection Act]] PL 93-86
* 1974: [[Safe Drinking Water Act]] PL 93-523
* 1977: [[Food and Agriculture Act]] PL 95-113
* 1985: [[Food Security Act]] PL 99-198
* 1990: [[Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990]] PL 101-624 (This act includes the [[Organic Foods Production Act of 1990]])
* 1996: [[Federal Agriculture Improvement and Reform Act]] PL 104-127
* 1996: [[Food Quality Protection Act]] PL 104-170
* 2000: [[Agriculture Risk Protection Act]] PL 106-224
* 2002: [[Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002|Farm Security and Rural Investment Act]] PL 107-171
* 2008: [[Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008]] PL 110-246
* 2010: [[Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010]] PL 111-296
{{Div col end}}

==See also==
{{Portal|United States|Politics|Agriculture}}
{{colbegin}}
* [[Adjusted Gross Revenue Insurance]]
* [[Alternative Agricultural Research and Commercialization Corporation]]
* [[Butter-Powder Tilt]]
* [[Congressional seed distribution]]
*[[Farm Credit Administration]]
* [[Institute of Child Nutrition]]
* [[United States farm bill]], history of Congressional laws on agriculture
* [[United States Agricultural Society]]
* [[USDA home loan]]
* [[Food and Agriculture Councils]]
{{colend}}

==Notes and references==
* {{USDA}}
{{reflist}}

==Further reading==
* Baker, Gladys L. ed. ''Century of service: the first 100 years of the United States Department of Agriculture'' (US Department of Agriculture, 1963), the standard history; [https://archive.org/details/centuryofservice00unit online].
* {{cite journal |last1=Benedict |first1=Murray R. |title=The Trend in American Agricultural Policy 1920–1949 |journal=Zeitschrift für die gesamte Staatswissenschaft |date=1950 |volume=106 |issue=1 |pages=97–122 |jstor=40747300 }}
* Benedict, Murray R. ''Farm policies of the United States, 1790–1950: a study of their origins and development'' (1966) 546pp [https://archive.org/details/farmpoliciesofun0000bene online]; also [https://books.google.com/books?id=UIny62slUL4C&dq=.+Farm+policies+of+the+United+States,+1790-1950:&pg=PA1 another copy]
* Cochrane, Willard W. ''The Development of American Agriculture: A Historical Analysis'' (2nd ed. U of Minnesota Press, 1993) 512pp.
* Cochrane, Willard W. and Mary Ellen Ryan. ''American Farm Policy: 1948–1973'' (U of Minnesota Press, 1976).
* CQ. ''Congress and the Nation'' (1965–2021), highly detailed coverage of each presidency since Truman; extensive coverage of agricultural policies. [https://archive.org/search.php?query=title%3A%28%22congress+and+the+nation%22%29&sort=-date online free to borrow]
* {{cite book |last1=Coppess |first1=Jonathan |author-link=Jonathan Coppess|title=The Fault Lines of Farm Policy: A Legislative and Political History of the Farm Bill |date=2018 |publisher=U of Nebraska Press |isbn=978-1-4962-0512-4 }}
* {{cite journal |last1=Gardner |first1=Bruce L. |title=The Federal Government in Farm Commodity Markets: Recent Reform Efforts in a Long-Term Context |journal=Agricultural History |date=1996 |volume=70 |issue=2 |pages=177–195 |jstor=3744532 }}
* {{cite web |last=Griesbach |first=Rob |url=https://www.ars.usda.gov/ARSUserFiles/80000000/BARCCentennial/BARC%20History%20Plants%201.pdf |title=BARC History: Bureau of Plant Industry |date=2010}}
* Matusow, Allen J. ''Farm policies and politics in the Truman years'' (1967) [https://archive.org/details/farmpoliciespoli0000unse online]
*  {{cite journal |last1=Orden |first1=David |last2=Zulauf |first2=Carl |title=Political Economy of the 2014 Farm Bill |journal=American Journal of Agricultural Economics |date=October 2015 |volume=97 |issue=5 |pages=1298–1311 |doi=10.1093/ajae/aav028 |hdl=10919/96941 |hdl-access=free }}
* Phillips, Sarah T., et al. "Reflections on one hundred and fifty years of the United States Department of Agriculture." ''Agricultural History'' 87.3 (2013): 314–367. https://doi.org/10.3098/ah.2013.87.3.314
* {{cite web |last1=Sumner |first1=Daniel A. |title=Farm Subsidy Tradition and Modern Agricultural Realities |website=University of California Agricultural Issues Center |url=https://aic.ucdavis.edu/research/farmbill07/aeibriefs/20070515_sumnerRationalesfinal.pdf |citeseerx=10.1.1.411.284 }}
* Winters, Donald L. ''Henry Cantwell Wallace as Secretary of Agriculture, 1921–1924'' (1970) 
* {{cite journal |last1=Zulauf |first1=Carl |last2=Orden |first2=David |title=80 Years of Farm Bills—Evolutionary Reform |journal=Choices |date=2016 |volume=31 |issue=4 |pages=1–2 |jstor=choices.31.4.16 |url=http://www.choicesmagazine.org/UserFiles/file/cmsarticle_551.pdf }}

===Historiography===

* Jones, Arnita A, and Wayne D. Rasmussen. "Wayne Rasmussen and the Development of Policy History at the United States Department of Agriculture" ''The Public Historian'' 14#1 (1992), pp.&nbsp;11–29 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/3378438 online]
* Zobbe, Henrik. "On the foundation of agricultural policy research in the United States." (Dept. of Agricultural Economics Staff Paper 02–08, Purdue University, 2002) [https://ageconsearch.umn.edu/record/28644/f online]

===Primary sources===
* Rasmussen, Wayne D., ed. ''Agriculture in the United States: a documentary history'' (4 vol, Random House, 1975) 3661pp.  [https://archive.org/details/agricultureinuni0000rasm vol 4 online]

==External links==
{{Commons category|United States Department of Agriculture}}
* {{Official website}}
* [https://www.usaspending.gov/agency/department-of-agriculture Department of Agriculture] on [[Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006|USAspending.gov]]
* [https://www.federalregister.gov/agencies/agriculture-department Department of Agriculture] in the ''[[Federal Register]]''
* [http://www.colby.edu/sts/97guide/nara07-18.html National Archives document of the USDA's origins]

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