USDA Blog

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) launched a new internship program for students from migrant and farmworker backgrounds this summer.

Parents and caregivers should take extra precautions when preparing and packing a school lunch. Flunking in food safety is not an option, especially when children are most vulnerable to foodborne illness.

Almost a year and a half ago, Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack outlined USDA’s focus on nutrition security, which builds on food security by emphasizing the co-existence of food insecurity and diet-related diseases and disparities. Put simply, nutrition security means having consistent and...

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) selected 100 students for this year’s USDA/1890 National Scholars Program out of a record number of applications received through the new online application process. The new online portal is part of USDA’s efforts to improve accessibility to USDA programs...

The 2025 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee’s work continues! The committee will hold its third meeting September 12-13, 2023. The U.S. Departments of Health and Human Services (HHS) and Agriculture (USDA) invite the public to participate in this important event via live webcast. Registration is...

Treating and recycling used municipal water for irrigation is not a new concept, but there may be an unforeseen consequence with that practice: Microplastics.

Meet 2022 E. Kika De La Garza Fellow Sandya Kesoju, Ph.D., from Columbia Basin College (CBC) in Pasco, Wash. As the director for Agriculture Education, Research and Development, she oversees the agriculture department’s administrative activities and operations. Among her many duties in this role...

What do biologists look for in a healthy forest? A diversity in the ages and composition of trees and occasional breaks in canopy to allow sunlight to reach understory plants. Healthy forests, just like healthy human populations, are sustained by a diversity of ages. Each group has a role to play in...

A young girl looks fearfully at the large wooden canoe bobbing on the water. She steps into the canoe and it moves. She yelps, and is given a reassuring smile by her boat captain. She gets settled holding her paddle tightly, convinced with every movement that the canoe will capsize. The canoe takes...

Every January, Americans are bombarded with information about New Year’s resolutions. While many of us set our hopes high on January 1 st, our commitment to our lofty resolutions tends to dwindle over time. In fact, by June, less than half of us are still committed to accomplishing our New Year’s...