1. Department of Agriculture “Caring for the land and serving people.”

2. Secretaries • Tom Vilsack is currently the secretary of the department of agriculture, and the deputy secretary is Kathleen Merrigan. • Their job is to strengthen the agricultural economy of the United States, by supporting farmers and ranchers.

3. Historical Highlights of the Dep. • Founded in 1862 by Abraham Lincoln • 1865-70 The Sharecropping Act replaced slave labor • 1946 National School Lunch Act • 1964 Food Stamp Act and War on Poverty

4. Agencies of the Dep. of Agriculture • Food and Nutrition Service • Food Safety and Inspection Service • Forrest Service • National Agricultural Library • Rural Development • (these are just a few)

5. News • Yesterday, the USDA announced a request for applications for FY 2014 farm to school grants. • On the 1st of this month, the USDA proposed a new standard in school lunches.

6. Strengths and Weaknesses • The FSIS is having problems enforcing the HMSA (Humane Methods of Slaughter Act). • There has recently been a beef recall, which has people questioning the USDA’s oversight of the meat industry. • In the past 4 years, the exports of the USDA have exceeded $478 billion. • The USDA supports over 1 million jobs, like farmers and ranchers.

7. Work Cited • http://www.fs.fed.us/aboutus/mission.shtml • http://www.usda.gov/wps/portal/usda/usdahome? • http://www.usda.gov/documents/Results-Trade.pdf • http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-10-487T • http://www.yourlawyer.com/articles/title/latest-meat-recall-highlights-usda-weaknesses