United States Department of Agriculture

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United States Department of Agriculture
Seal of the Department of Agriculture
Seal of the Department of Agriculture
Agency overview
Formed February 15, 1889
Jurisdiction Federal government of the United States
Employees 105,778 (June 2007)
Annual Budget $94 billion USD (2006)
Agency Executives Charles F. Conner (acting), Secretary of Agriculture
 
vacant, Deputy Secretary of Agriculture
Child Agency Click here
Website
www.usda.gov

The United States Department of Agriculture (also called the Agriculture Department, or USDA) is a United States Federal Executive Department (or Cabinet Department). Its purpose is to develop and execute 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 America and abroad. Chuck Conner is the department's acting secretary, following the resignation of former Secretary Mike Johanns on September 20, 2007. On October 31, 2007, President George W. Bush nominated Ed Schafer to be Secretary of Agriculture.

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The United States had a largely agrarian economy early in its history. 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 L. Ellsworth, a man 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. 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.

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 special interest groups were lobbying for Cabinet representation. Business interests sought a Department of Commerce and Industry. Farmers tried to raise the Department of Agriculture to Cabinet rank. In 1887, the House and Senate passed bills giving cabinet status to the Department of Agriculture and Labor, but farm interests objected to the addition of labor, and the bill was killed in conference. 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. In this way, the Department of Agriculture became a source of comfort as people struggled to survive in rural areas. 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] In 1999, the USDA settled a class action lawsuit alleging discrimination against African-American farmers.

A contemporary logo augments the department's official seal as a part of its graphic identity.
A contemporary logo augments the department's official seal as a part of its graphic identity.

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.

USDA also concerns itself with assisting farmers and food procucers with the sale of crops and food on both a domestic and on the world market.

USDA also plays an important role in overseas aid programs, by providing surplus foods to developing countries to support development programs, sometimes via USAID or directly to foreign governments, international bodies such as WFP or approved non profit organizations. The Agriculture Act of 1949, section 416 (b) and Agricultural Development and Trade Act of 1954 (also known as Public Law 480 or just PL 480) provides the legal basis of such actions.

The United States Secretary of Agriculture administers the USDA.

The USDA's National Animal Identification System assists large agri-business and factory farms track disease in herds, a necessary regulation for sale of meat overseas.

The headquarters of the USDA are on the National Mall at Washington, D.C.
The headquarters of the USDA are on the National Mall at Washington, D.C.
USDA building (photo taken in 1934)
USDA building (photo taken in 1934)

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

Important legislation setting policy of the USDA includes the:

  1. ^ 12 Stat. 387, now codified at 7 U.S.C. § 2201.
  2. ^ General Accounting Office,USDA - Problems Continue to Hinider the Timely Processing of Discriminatinon Complaints, January 1999
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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 Agriculture Services
Farm Service Agency • Foreign Agricultural Service • Risk Management Agency

Under Secretary of Agriculture for Rural Development
Rural Development

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 • Federal Crop Insurance Corporation • Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration

 United States Department of Agriculture Seal
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United States government agencies involved in Environmental science
United States Environmental Protection Agency
Department of the Interior National Park Service • Fish and Wildlife Service • Bureau of Indian Affairs • Bureau of Land Management • Minerals Management Service • Office of Surface Mining, Reclamation, and Enforcement • Geological Survey • Bureau of Reclamation • Office of Insular Affairs
National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration		 National Weather Service • National Ocean Service • National Geodetic Survey • National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration • National Marine Fisheries Service • Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research
Department of Energy Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy • Energy Information Administration • Federal Energy Regulatory Commission • Biological and Environmental Research • Office of Environmental Management
Department of Agriculture Farm Service Agency • Foreign Agricultural Service • Risk Management Agency • Food Safety and Inspection Service • Forest Service • Natural Resources Conservation Service • Rural Business-Cooperative Service • Office of Community Development • Rural Housing Service  • Rural Utilities Service • Food and Nutrition Service • Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion • Agricultural Marketing Service • Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service • Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration • Agricultural Research Service • Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service • Economic Research Service • National Agricultural Statistics Service • Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation Service
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United States Federal Executive Departments
Past departments:  Commerce and Labor • Health, Education, and Welfare • Navy • Post Office • War
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Department_of_Agriculture"
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