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The United States National Agricultural Library is one of the world's largest and most accessible agricultural research libraries, and serves as a National Library of the United States and as the library of the United States Department of Agriculture. The library has two locations, the Abraham Lincoln Building on the grounds of the Henry A. Wallace Beltsville Agricultural Research Center, and the DC Reference Center in the Department of Agriculture's South Building in Washington, DC.

The National Agricultural Library was created as the departmental library for the U.S. Department of Agriculture in 1862 and became a national library in 1962. One of four national libraries of the United States (along with the Library of Congress, the National Library of Medicine, and the National Library of Education), it is also the coordinator for a national network of state land-grant and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) field libraries. In its international role, the National Agricultural Library serves as the U.S. center for the international agricultural information system, coordinating and sharing resources and enhancing global access to agricultural data. The National Agricultural Library's collection of over 3.3 million items and its leadership role in information services and technology applications combine to make it the foremost agricultural library in the world.

The library operates the Agricola database of scientific literature.

The National Agricultural Library houses several specialized information centers, which provide access to comprehensive and essential information resources focusing on the specific aspects of agricultural subjects. In addition to the general reference services available at NAL, each center offers Internet access to resources enhancing information availability and dissemination. The centers have staff available to serve customers on-site as well as by phone, fax or email. The Information Centers at the National Agricultural Library include:

• Alternative Farming Systems Information Center
• Animal Welfare Information Center
• Food and Nutrition Information Center
  • Food Stamp Nutrition Connection (FSNC)
  • Healthy School Meals Resource System
  • International Bibliographic Information on Dietary Supplements Database (IBIDS)
  • Nutrition.gov
  • WIC Works Resource System
• Food Safety Information Center
• Invasive Species Information Center
• Rural Information Center
• Technology Transfer Information Center
• Water Quality Information Center

• National Agricultural Library.
• NAL Agricultural Thesaurus.
• Food Stamp Nutrition Connection.
• Additional AGRICOLA Database-related Resource(s).

v • d • e 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