USDA Blog

When Linda Leaks organized tenants in low-income District of Columbia neighborhoods to fight eviction, she helped them gain more than home ownership. In combatting gentrification and the community displacement of the ‘80s and ‘90s, she empowered people to recognize the collective power of the...

For a women-owned business in rural Indiana, working with USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) became a life-changing experience. Soccer moms Carol Podolak and Joy Thompkins sold homemade peanut butter as their kids’ team fundraiser to travel from Portage, Indiana to Dallas, Texas for a...

One week on the job can take organic inspectors from a field crop farm to a dairy pasture or food production facility. Inspectors audit organic farms, ranches, and businesses to verify that they follow the USDA organic standards. Travel and flexibility are inherent to inspection work, and many...

Consumers around the globe often recognize the USDA organic seal but may want to learn more about the practices the organic standards include. During an Introduction to Organic Farming and Gardening Course offered by USDA Human Capital Initiative partner Florida Organic Growers (FOG), Dr. Juan C...

In recognition of Homeownership Month this June, USDA Rural Development (RD) New York’s State Office had the privilege of celebrating the newest homeowner on the St. Regis Mohawk Reservation. Randa Martin and her four children welcomed the RD team and staff from the Akwesasne Housing Authority to...

The last few years have seen the U.S. dairy industry weather some storms, including an unprecedented global pandemic and the related supply chain disruptions, which forced producers to dump millions of gallons of milk that no longer had a market. Through it all, USDA continues to support the...

Today, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Tom Vilsack kicked off National Homeownership Month. As part of this nationwide celebration, USDA is highlighting programs that help people in rural and Tribal areas buy, build and repair affordable homes and to pay their rent in America’s...

Water has always shaped where we plant our communities and how they grow. If you farm, fish, or live in rural America, you know that healthy waterways are vital to ensuring that communities, large or small, can continue to thrive.

Every year, thousands of farmers, ranchers, and businesses grow and produce organic products – and all these operations are audited by qualified organic inspectors. Organic inspectors visit fields, pastures, or processing plants to conduct annual reviews where they meet with farmers and processors...

I recently traveled to Torrey, New York to break ground on the town’s first-ever water district. This project has been more than 20 years in the making and it will improve the health and lives of people living in rural parts of the state. It will also improve the water quality and conservation...