USDA Blog

Fall is just around the corner and students across the country are back in school. At the USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS), we are looking forward to our own school year activities.

During my recent visit to Hartford, I toured the historic Billings Forge Farmers Market, which featured an assortment of fresh, locally grown fruits and vegetables, baking foods, cheeses, meats and numerous other healthy foods. Located in a food desert, the market positively compliments the “Bodegas...

Last week, six officials from China's Ministry of Agriculture arrived in America’s heartland to begin an in-depth exploration of the workings of the U.S. soybean industry.

In today's technological society, children have retreated from outdoor activities -- bike riding, tree climbing or clinging to a rope swing to drop into a river -towards entirely virtual activities, indoor adventures at the end of a power cord. A few years ago, researchers and educators gave this...

Last week, the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Administration and the Office of Human Resources and Management hosted the USDA-Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) Roundtable in Washington, D.C. The USDA-AAPI Roundtable brought together over 70 participants, including over 35 AAPI community...

Recently, I had the pleasure to travel to the rural Alaskan communities of Kwigillingok, Kasigluk, and Pitkas Point. The visit was made along with Rural Utilities Service (RUS) Administrator Jonathan Adelstein, Alaska State Director Jim Nordlund, and a few of our major program partners. As with...

In honor of Hispanic Heritage Month, the USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) would like to recognize the contributions that Latinos make to the agriculture industry. The agency celebrates individuals like former U.S. Representative Eligio “Kika” de la Garza II, for the impact they had on the...

Several top French chefs gathered on September 19 at the People’s Garden located at the residence of the U.S. Ambassador to France. In a friendly atmosphere, the chefs prepared dishes using fruits and vegetables from the garden, as well as U.S. cranberries and seafood (crab, salmon) from Alaska. The...

In August I went back to school with students in Albany and Newton, Ga., to see how healthy school meals help students get their “S.W.A.G. on” and prepare for success. In Albany, 400 Sherwood Acres Elementary Magnet School students celebrated school breakfast, many wearing S.W.A.G. t-shirts, which...

I am a communications intern with USDA Rural Development in North Carolina and recently had the opportunity to visit the Boys and Girls Homes of North Carolina at Lake Waccamaw (BGHNC). I knew we would be visiting a residential facility that cared for at- risk children, but I had no idea what to...