USDA Blog

The holidays are often a time for family, fun, and food. New Year’s is no exception. One thing many nations around the world have in common is the belief that eating certain foods on New Year’s will bring good luck and prosperity in the 12 months to follow.

Whether eaten sliced or as a pizza topping, pineapple is a delicious and versatile tropical fruit that ranks third in worldwide popularity behind the banana and mango.

Clean water is a priority for all of us. When farmers manage nutrients, they are also helping to minimize the runoff of nutrients into local streams and rivers.

Though remarkably thin, soil makes up a layer of the Earth’s crust that’s vital to human survival. The soil is a living, breathing thing that, like the body’s skin, requires care and attention lest we lose its many benefits.

According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), one-third of the planet’s soils are degraded. This condition is caused by a number of natural factors, including wind and water erosion and nutrient imbalances, but people also leave an indelible impact on the earth...

The human and animal health communities recently celebrated World Antibiotic Awareness Week. Did you know that USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) plays an important role in the conversation about antibiotic use? We gather real-world data on the use of antimicrobial agents on U...

For farmers across the country, it comes as no surprise to hear that conservation tillage practices – particularly continuous no-till – can save time and money compared to conventional tillage. The potential benefits of no-till are well-documented, from improving soil health to reducing annual fuel...

What should you have done with all of that leftover Thanksgiving turkey? Should you have frozen it, given it away, or composted it? Maybe these aren’t even the right questions. Should you have bought a smaller bird? What would you have done if you were in the country of Turkey? Or if you were in...

Did you know that the wild turkey nearly triumphed over the bald eagle as the symbol of America? Yes, it’s true. Proponents as luminous as Benjamin Franklin once advocated for the turkey to be the symbol on the Great Seal of The United States. That’s all history now, but the turkey remains of strong...

The cranberries that are traditionally a part of Thanksgiving dinner may have a brighter future because of what Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists found when they went digging recently in a remote marsh in Wisconsin.