United States Department of Agriculture

Established in 1862, USDA is responsible for the safety of meat, poultry, and egg products. It conducts ongoing research in areas from human nutrition to new crop technologies and also helps ensure open markets for U.S. agricultural products.

The particular contribution of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) to public health rests, for the most part, in its spawning of the great U.S. regulatory agencies: the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS); the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA); the Food and Drug Administration (FDA); and the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS). Of these, APHIS and FSIS remain within the USDA, while the EPA became an independent agency in 1971 and the FDA became an independent agency in 1941 and then later became part of the Department of Health Education and Welfare (now the Department of Health and Human Services).

APHIS regulates plant and animal diseases mainly in order to protect economic interests. Some of the animal diseases, however, are transmissible to humans, including brucellosis (undulant fever) and tuberculosis. APHIS also is charged with keeping exotic animal diseases such as foot and mouth disease and bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE or mad cow disease) out of the United States. Epidemics of both these diseases among animals in several European countries during 2000 and 2001 have caused considerable fear of meat products as well as economic damage from extensive killing of animals to control the epidemics. Thus far during these outbreaks, however, no cases of either disease have been reported in the United States. Success in this area has marked APHIS as one of the most effective agencies of its kind in the world.

FSIS is charged with the inspection of meat, poultry, and eggs. A particularly large agency of more than 9,000 employees, FSIS is required by law to continuously inspect food animals during slaughter. This requirement is somewhat dated and is based on the dubious presumption that visual inspection is effective.

In order to modernize meat and poultry inspection, FSIS published a regulation in 1996 which has enabled the agency to employ the Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point System (HACCP) as an added and improved safeguard. HACCP is a systems approach to food control that emphasizes prevention. First developed for the space program, HACCP is generally recognized as the most advanced system for ensuring safe food. Integral to the system is the identification of hazards that could contaminate the food and a comprehensive set of verification steps and audits that ensure the system has been effective. First adapted to a regulatory framework by the U.S. government, HACCP is now the standard of food inspection throughout the world. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) has evaluated HACCP and concluded that it is, in fact, reducing food-borne disease from meat and poultry sources.

Egg inspection primarily consists of publishing standards for storage and temperature coupled with delegated collaboration with state and local officials. Egg safety concerns have been heightened by the advent of Salmonella enteritidis in the early 1980s. This organism found a new niche in the oviduct of laying chickens. While causing no disease to the bird, by seeding itself in the egg yolk it became a leading cause of salmonellosis in humans. Control programs center on eliminating the disease from breeder and laying flocks, as well as with consumer education programs designed to encourage adequate cooking of eggs. These interdiction programs have materially reduced human infection associated with the organism.

FSIS also operates two so-called "zero tolerance" programs—for Listeria monocytogenes and for Escherichia coli 0157: H7. Zero tolerance means that the presence of the organism at any level in a sample of ready-to-eat food is grounds for recall of the food from the marketplace. The largest food recalls in American history have resulted from this policy over the past two years. The L. monocytogenes program was initiated in 1988; a 1994 evaluation by CDC credited the program with a 25 percent reduction in human Listeriosis. The hemorrhagic E. coli program was implemented in 1994; human enterohemorrhagic E. coli has not particularly declined, but it also has not increased since the inception of the program in the midst of an annually progressing incidence.

FSIS has overseen a dramatic reduction in chemical contaminants of the meat and poultry supply. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, 10 percent or more of these foods were contaminated with anabolic steroids, antibiotics, pesticides, or heavy metals. Today, the levels of violative residues are below 1 percent and, in most meat commodities, levels are approaching zero. Violative levels are hazardous concentrations in foods. These accomplishments are due to a risk-based sampling program followed by sanctions against violators, due in part to a productive synergy with FDA's Center for Veterinary Medicine (CVM). CVM has banned or severely restricted a number of persistent agricultural chemicals such as diethylstilbesterol, sulfamethazine, and dimetridazole. CVM has acted on information developed with FSIS to both educate and prosecute farmers and veterinarians who do not use animal drugs correctly.

Bibliography

Brown, M., ed. (2000). HACCP in the Meat Industry. Cambridge, UK: Woodhead Publishing Ltd.

Crawford, L. M., and Franco, D. A. (1993). Animal Drugs and Human Health. Basel: Technomics Press.

— LESTER M. CRAWFORD

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is an executive, cabinet-level department in the federal government. It is directed by the secretary of agriculture, who reports to the president of the United States. Its primary concern is the nation's agriculture industry, and it addresses this concern through numerous economic, regulatory, environmental, and scientific programs. The USDA provides financial aid to farmers through loans, grants, and a system of price supports that delicately balances the nation's agriculture markets, and its international efforts to promote domestically grown products abroad. It regulates the quality and output of the grain, meat, and poultry industries. Through various conservation programs, the department helps protect soil, water, forests, and other natural resources. The USDA also administers the federal Food Stamp Program, one of the welfare system's largest services.

The USDA has a long history. It was created by an act of May 15, 1862 (12 Stat. 387, now codified at 7 U.S.C.A. § 2201), and was administered by a commissioner of agriculture until 1889 (25 Stat. 659). In 1889, Congress enlarged the department's powers and duties (7 U.S.C.A. §§ 2202, 2208). It made the USDA the eighth executive department in the federal government, and the commissioner became the secretary of agriculture. Federal lawmakers have tinkered with the department ever since. Notably, programs providing economic aid to farmers were established during the Great Depression, and they have since become a firmly entrenched part of federal law. Important contemporary reforms have included federal welfare services such as the Food Stamp Program, administered through the Food and Nutrition Service since the 1970s, and the Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C.A. § 1421 note et seq.), enacted to maintain the income of farmers.

The secretary of agriculture sits above an elaborate bureaucracy. The assistant secretary for administration runs day-to-day operations, serving as the secretary's principal adviser. Reporting to the assistant secretary are five departmental staff offices, which also help provide staff support to top policy officials and program agencies. These are the Office of Personnel, the Office of Finance and Management, the Office of Information Resources Management, the Office of Advocacy and Enterprise, and the Office of Operations. These offices coordinate the USDA's personnel management program; equal opportunity and civil rights activities; safety and health activities; management improvement programs; accounting, fiscal, and financial activities; automated data processing administration; procurement and contracts; and management of real and personal property.

Legal affairs are handled in various branches of the USDA. The judicial officer serves as the final deciding officer, in the place of the secretary, in regulatory proceedings and appeals of a quasi-judicial nature where a hearing is required by law. Two quasi-judicial agencies, the Office of Administrative Law Judges and the Board of Contract Appeals, adjudicate cases and decide contract disputes. Additional input to the secretary comes from the general counsel, who is both the principal legal adviser and the chief law officer of the department. All audits and investigations are conducted by the Office of the Inspector General, established by the Inspector General Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C.A. § 2 et seq.). The Office of Congressional Relations informs Congress of administrative policy.

The USDA is divided into seven divisions, each of which operates a number of programs. These are Small Community and Rural Development, Marketing and Inspection Services, Food and Consumer Services, International Affairs and Commodity Programs, Science and Education, Natural Resources and Environment, and Economics. The USDA also runs a graduate school.

Small Community and Rural Development

The Small Community and Rural Development Division includes four programs that provide financial help to farmers and rural communities. The Farmers Home Administration (FHA) provides loans to buy, operate, and improve farms and guarantees loans from commercial lenders. The Rural Development Administration (RDA) provides loans and grants to help rural communities become more economically competitive and to improve their standard of living. The Rural Electrification Administration (REA) is a credit agency that helps rural electric and telephone utilities obtain financing. The Federal Crop Insurance Corporation (FCIC) insures crops against loss from natural dangers.

Marketing and Inspection Services

Two of the six programs in the Marketing and Inspection Services Division address the role of marketing in agriculture; five of the six programs are concerned with inspections. The Agricultural Cooperative Service (ACS) provides technical assistance and research to farmers' cooperative organizations. The Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) administers standardization, grading, inspection, market news, marketing orders, research, promotion, and regulatory programs. The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service conducts programs pertaining to quarantine, environmental protection, the humane treatment of animals, and the reduction of crop and livestock losses. The Federal Grain Inspection Service regulates grain and other commodities; similarly, the Food Safety and Inspection Service regulates the meat and poultry industry. The Packers and Stockyards Administration enforces antitrust laws to ensure fair competition in the meat industry.

Food and Consumer Services

The Food and Consumer Services Division includes two social welfare programs and one consumer information service. The Food and Nutrition Service administers federal assistance programs to needy people, including the Food Stamp Program, special nutrition programs, and supplemental food programs. The Human Nutrition Information Service (HNIS) conducts research to improve professional and public understanding of diets and eating, and develops the national Dietary Guidelines for Americans. The Office of the Consumer Advisor focuses on consumer advocacy by helping USDA policy makers, representing the department before Congress, monitoring USDA programs, and conducting consumer outreach.

International Affairs and Commodity Programs

Two of the International Affairs and Commodity Programs Division's four programs help maintain a stable market for farm commodities, thus ensuring a steady income for farmers. The Agriculture Stabilization and Conservation Service (ASCS) administers programs of the Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC). These programs include so-called price supports: farmers who agree to limit their production of specially designated crops can sell them to the CCC or borrow money at support prices. The ASCS also furnishes emergency financial aid to farmers, operates a grain reserve program, provides milk producers refunds of the reduction in the price received for milk during a calendar year, and provides payments to dairy farmers if their milk is removed from the market because of contamination. It has responsibility for plans relating to food production and conservation in preparation for a national security emergency, and provides incentives for preserving and protecting agricultural resources.

The division also has an international focus. The Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) has primary responsibility for the USDA's overseas market information, access, and development programs. Maintaining a worldwide agricultural intelligence and reporting system, it also administers the USDA's export assistance and foreign food assistance programs. The Office of International Cooperation and Development (OICD) helps other USDA agencies and U.S. universities enhance U.S. agricultural competitiveness globally. Through utilizing the technical expertise of the U.S. agricultural community, it seeks to increase income and food availability in developing nations.

Science and Education

The Agricultural Research Service of the Science and Education Division conducts studies in the United States and overseas to improve farming. The Cooperative State Research Service (CSRS) administers acts of Congress that authorize federal appropriations for agricultural research carried out by the State Agricultural Experiment Stations. The Extension Service is the educational agency of the USDA. The National Agricultural Library provides information services to everyone from research scientists to the general public, and maintains the electronic Agricultural Online Access (AGRICOLA) database, available over the Internet and on compact disc.

Natural Resources and Environment

Two programs in the Natural Resources and Environment Division address environmental resources. The Forest Service oversees the national forests. It manages 156 national forests, nineteen national grasslands, and fifteen land-utilization projects on 191 million acres in forty-four states, the Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico. It provides national leadership and financial and technical assistance to owners and operators of nonfederal forestland, processors of forest products, and urban forestry interests. The Social Conservative Service (SCS) has responsibility for developing and carrying out a national soil and water conservation program in cooperation with landowners, developers, communities, and federal, state, and local agencies. It also assists in agricultural pollution control, environmental improvement, and rural community development.

Economics

The Economic Research Service (ERS) of the Economic Division analyzes economic and other social science data in order to improve agricultural performance and rural living. The National Agricultural Statistics Service prepares estimates and reports on production, supply, price, and other economic information. The Economic Analysis Staff makes analyses of recommendations by USDA agencies, task forces, and study groups to be used as a basis for short-term agricultural policy. The Office of Energy develops and coordinates all USDA energy policies, and works with other federal agencies on energy activities that may affect agriculture and the rural United States. The World Agricultural Outlook Board coordinates the USDA's worldwide gathering of economic intelligence. The Economics Management Staff provides management services to all these programs within the department.

USDA Graduate School

The Graduate School, U.S. Department of Agriculture, is a continuing education school offering career-related training to adults. Not directly funded by Congress or the USDA, it is self-supporting, with a mostly part-time faculty drawn from government and industry. The graduate school, administered by a director and governed by a general administration board appointed by the secretary of agriculture, was established on September 2, 1921, pursuant to act of May 15, 1862 (7 U.S.C.A. § 2201); joint resolution of April 12, 1892 (27 Stat. 395); and the Deficiencies Appropriation Act of March 3, 1901 (20 U.S.C.A. §. 91).

See: consumer protection; environmental law; Agricultural Law; Agriculture Subsidies.

"USDA" redirects here. For other uses, see USDA (disambiguation).

United States Department of Agriculture
Seal of the Department of Agriculture
Logo of the USDA
Agency overview
Formed	May 15, 1862 (Cabinet status February 15, 1889)
Preceding agency	Agricultural Division
Jurisdiction	Federal government of the United States
Headquarters	1301 Independence Avenue, S.W., Washington, D.C. 38°53′12″N 77°01′47″W / 38.88667°N 77.02972°W / 38.88667; -77.02972
Employees	105,778 (June 2007)
Annual budget	US$95 billion (2009)
Agency executives	Thomas J. Vilsack, Secretary of Agriculture Kathleen Merrigan, Deputy Secretary of Agriculture
Child agency	Click here
Website
www.usda.gov

The United States Department of Agriculture (informally the Agriculture Department or USDA) is the United States federal executive department responsible for developing and executing U.S. federal government policy on farming, agriculture, and food. It aims to meet the needs of farmers and ranchers, promote agricultural trade and production, work to assure food safety, protect natural resources, foster rural communities and end hunger in the United States and abroad.

The head of the department is the Secretary of Agriculture, who is a member of the Cabinet. The current Secretary is Tom Vilsack.

Contents 1 History 1.1 Origins 1.2 Formation and subsequent history 2 Operating units 2.1 Active 2.2 Inactive 3 Related legislation 4 See also 5 References 6 External links

History

Origins

Early in its history, the economy of the United States was largely agrarian. Officials in the federal government had long sought new and improved varieties of seeds, plants, and animals for importation to the United States. In 1836 Henry Leavitt Ellsworth, a Yale-educated attorney interested in improving agriculture, became Commissioner of Patents, a position within the Department of State. He soon began collecting and distributing new varieties of seeds and plants through members of the Congress and agricultural societies. In 1839 Congress established the Agricultural Division within the Patent Office and allotted $1,000 for "the collection of agricultural statistics and other agricultural purposes."

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. Ellsworth's agricultural focus earned him the sobriquet of "The Father of the Department of Agriculture."

In 1849 the Patent Office was transferred to the newly created Department of the Interior. In the ensuing years, agitation for a separate bureau of agriculture within the department or a separate department devoted to agriculture kept recurring.

Formation and subsequent history

On May 15, 1862, President Abraham Lincoln established the independent Department of Agriculture to be headed by a Commissioner without Cabinet status.^[1] Lincoln called it the "people's department." In the 1880s, varied interest 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 House of Representatives and Senate passed bills giving Cabinet status to the Department of Agriculture and Labor, but the bill was killed in conference committee after farm interests objected to the addition of labor. Finally, on February 9, 1889, President Grover Cleveland signed a bill into law elevating the Department of Agriculture to Cabinet level.

In 1887, the Hatch Act provided for the federal funding of agricultural experiment stations in each state. The Smith-Lever Act of 1914 then funded cooperative extension services in each state to teach agriculture, home economics and related subjects to the public. With these and similar provisions, the USDA reached out to every county of every state.

During the Great Depression, farming remained a common way of life for millions of Americans. The Department of Agriculture was crucial to providing concerned persons with the assistance that they needed to make it through this difficult period, helping to ensure that food continued to be produced and distributed to those who needed it, assisting with loans for small landowners, and contributing to the education of the rural youth.

Allegations have been made that throughout the agency's history it discriminated against African-American farmers, denying them loans and access to other programs well into the 1990s.^[2] The effect of this discrimination was the near total elimination of African-American farmers in the United States.^[3] In 1999, the USDA settled a class action lawsuit (Pigford v. Glickman) alleging discrimination against African-American farmers.

Today, many of the programs concerned with the distribution of food and nutrition to people of America and providing nourishment as well as nutrition education to those in need are run and operated under the USDA Food and Nutrition Service. The USDA also concerns itself with assisting farmers and food producers with the sale of crops and food on both a domestic and on the world market. It plays a role in overseas aid programs by providing surplus foods to developing countries. This aid can go through USAID, foreign governments, international bodies such as World Food Program, or approved non profit organizations. The Agricultural Act of 1949, section 416 (b) and Agricultural Trade Development and Assistance Act of 1954, also known as Public Law 480 or Food for Peace, provides the legal basis of such actions.

Operating units

Active

The headquarters of the USDA are on the National Mall at Washington, D.C.

USDA building (photo taken in 1934)

• Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS)
  • National Organic Program (NOP)
• Agricultural Research Service (ARS)
  • National Agricultural Library (NAL)
• Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS)^[4]
  • Animal Care (AC)
  • Biotechnology Regulatory Services (BRS)
  • International Services (IS)
  • Plant Protection and Quarantine (PPQ)
  • Veterinary Services
  • Wildlife Services
• Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion (CNPP)
• Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service (CSREES)
• Economic Research Service (ERS)
• Farm Service Agency (FSA)
• Food and Nutrition Service (FNS)
• Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS)
• Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS)
• Forest Service (FS)
• Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration (GIPSA)
• National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS)
• National Finance Center (NFC)
• Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS)
• Risk Management Agency (RMA)
• Rural Development (RD)
  • Office of Community Development (OCD)
  • Rural Housing Service (RHS)

Inactive

• Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation Service (ASCS) (split and renamed Farm Service Agency and Natural Resources Conservation Service)
• Animal Damage Control (renamed Wildlife Services)

Related legislation

The Secretary of Agriculture's office is located in the Jamie L. Whitten Building.

USDA Visitor's Center in the Jamie L. Whitten Building.

Important legislation setting policy of the USDA includes the:

• 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: 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
• 1948: Hope-Aiken Agriculture Act PL 80-897
• 1956: Soil Bank Program authorized
• 1957: Poultry Inspection Act
• 1947: Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act PL 80-104
• 1949: Agricultural Act PL 81-439 (Section 416 (b))
• 1954: Food for Peace Act PL 83-480
• 1954: Agricultural Act PL 83-690
• 1956: Mutual Security Act PL 84-726
• 1957: Poultry Products Inspection Act PL 85-172
• 1958: Food Additives Amendment PL 85-929
• 1958: Humane Slaughter Act
• 1958: Agricultural Act PL 85-835
• 1961: Agricultural Act PL 87-128
• 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 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
• 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 PL 107-171
• 2008: Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 PL 110-246

See also

• Agriculture in the United States
• Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion
• Farm Credit System
• Germplasm Resources Information Network
• Graduate School, USDA
• MyPyramid
• Rural Energy for America Program (REAP)
• U.S. Department of Agriculture Administration Building
• U.S. Department of Agriculture South Building

References

1. ^ 12 Stat. 387, now codified at 7 U.S.C. § 2201.
2. ^ General Accounting Office, USDA - Problems Continue to Hinder the Timely Processing of Discrimination Complaints, January 1999
3. ^ Brooks, Roy L. Atonement and Forgiveness: A New Model for Black Reparations. University of California Press. pp. 7-8. ISBN 0-520-24813-9. 
4. ^ APHIS Organization. USDA. Retrieved on 2009-03-09.

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External links

• United States Department of Agriculture and public domain policy.
• USDA National Nutrient Database
• National Archives document of the USDA's origins
• Report: USDA Regulatory Policy Has Been 'Hijacked' by Agribusiness Industry - July 23, 2004.
• USDA releases 180-Day Report on Avian Influenza efforts and supplemental spending H5N1 efforts.
• USDA Economic Research Service State Fact Sheets
• USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference Search By Food
• USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference Nutrient Lists Search By Nutrient
• USDA Awards $97 M for Renewable Energy Projects
• USDA Bets the Farm on Animal ID Program
• USDA Nutrition Information
• Proposed and finalized federal regulations from the United States Department of Agriculture

Coordinates: 38°53′14″N 77°01′48″W / 38.887125°N 77.030007°W / 38.887125; -77.030007

v • d • e Agencies under the United States Department of Agriculture Secretary of Agriculture · Deputy Secretary of Agriculture Under Secretary of Agriculture for Natural Resources and Environment Forest Service · Natural Resources Conservation Service Under Secretary of Agriculture for Farm and Foreign Agricultural Services Farm Service Agency · Foreign Agricultural Service · Risk Management Agency  · Federal Crop Insurance Corporation Under Secretary of Agriculture for Rural Development Rural Housing Service  · Rural Utilities Service  · Rural Business-Cooperative Service Under Secretary of Agriculture for Food, Nutrition, and Consumer Services Food and Nutrition Service · Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion Under Secretary of Agriculture for Food Safety Food Safety and Inspection Service Under Secretary of Agriculture for Research, Education, and Economics Agricultural Research Service · Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service · Economic Research Service · National Agricultural Library · National Agricultural Statistics Service Under Secretary of Agriculture for Marketing and Regulatory Programs Agricultural Marketing Service · Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service · Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration

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