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USDA Summer Road Trip
ICYMI, here's what happened last week at USDA:
The fifth and final stop on our #USDARoadTrip is the backbone of our nation’s rural economy — the rural business. By making historic investments and streamlining access to capital for enterprises of all sizes, USDA is helping to build a productive and dynamic rural landscape capable of supporting America’s workforce.
Just last week, Secretary Vilsack announced 18.1 million dollars in investments for 92 projects which will support the start-up or expansion of rural small businesses. These investments will foster growth and prosperity by creating jobs locally and attracting new families and investors to rural communities, ultimately improving the overall quality of life for Americans living outside of our urban centers. Whether it’s manufacturing, service-based, retail, wholesale, or farming, when business is booming in rural cities and towns, it creates opportunity and adds to the breadth and depth of communities nationwide.
In the month of July, we have taken you on a #USDARoadTrip across multiple sectors and through all 50 states. Along the way, we’ve highlighted the impact of our work to build a stronger, more dynamic rural economy that includes innovative and streamlined services for the American people and ladders of opportunity for those working hard. From ensuring a safe and affordable food system, to maintaining our majestic public lands, to investing in rural businesses and everything in between, USDA is there fighting hard to ensure the best for all Americans through partnership, progress and promise.
In August we'll turn our attention to the upcoming school year, and building a strong foundation for our children at home and and school. Be sure to tune in using #HealthierNextG
The Week in Pictures
The Spirit of Volunteerism, Alive with Michigan RD Staff
All images available in Flickr.
On the USDA Blog
#USDARoadTrip: Investments in Rural Business
The fifth and final stop on our #USDARoadTrip is the backbone of our nation’s rural economy — rural business. By making historic investments and streamlining access to capital for enterprises of all sizes, USDA is helping to build a productive and dynamic rural landscape capable of supporting America’s workforce.
On the Road in Santa Fe – Saluting Farmers Markets All the Way
Greetings from New Mexico, the Land of Enchantment! I’m here at the Santa Fe Farmers Market, where local farmers and ranchers have come together to sell their goods to the community for more than 50 years. This popular farmers market started with just a handful of growers and now has more than 100 vendors, more than any other in the state. It’s the perfect place to celebrate all that farmers markets do for rural and urban communities around the country by kicking off the 16th annual National Farmers Market Week.
Grooming New Women Leaders in the Fruit and Vegetable Industry
The future of agriculture is bright when looking at young people like Mariana Lizeth González Sánchez, a current member of the National Mango Board. With nearly 8 years’ experience in the mango industry, Sanchez is the manager of exports at EB International. In her role, Sanchez is responsible for purchasing, logistics, exporting and marketing of mangos.
The Spirit of Volunteerism, Alive with Michigan RD Staff
One of the things that sets USDA Rural Development apart is the dedication of its employees. This week they provided a great example of how they are willing to go out of their way to assist people in need by helping to repair the home of Susan Cullen in Big Rapids. Susan is blind and has struggled to keep up her home. She expressed her concerns to Area Specialist Aileen Waldron and wondered what could to be done to make it more accessible and complete needed repairs.
Assistance Helps Beginning Farmer Improve Operation
A rich background in agriculture helped Wade Kloepping make the decision to come home to Dawson County after college and take over the family farm near Eustis, Nebraska. Two years before graduating from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Kloepping’s dad passed away; he was the manager of the family’s farming operation. Wade has since taken over that role. As a beginning farmer, he aimed to improve the stocking rate of his pasture, advance forage productivity and increase the amount of native plants.
As a native Georgian, it is always a treat to go back home and see what’s happening on my family farm as well as the farms of my neighbors. Today I had the pleasure of meeting Jean Oliver, a dedicated mother, daughter and cattle farmer. She recently received a microloan from the Farm Service Agency to help build her operation. Within the next 10 years, Jean plans to make the leap from working 9-to-5 as a counselor with the Cook County school system to living off of her family’s 200-year-old farm, raising and selling cattle.
USDA TV
USDA Week in Review Video - July 31, 2015
Read about us in the News
The White House is trying to introduce Wall Street to rural America (Washington Post)
On Tuesday, the White House hosted a sales event of sorts: The Department of Agriculture brought in about 100 investors and venture capitalists to tell them about the golden opportunities they’ve been missing in the nation’s heartland. These aren’t the usual ways you might think of for Wall Street types to make money, like backing industrial dairies or grain processing facilities. Rather, they’re the projects that the government might previously have simply financed itself — sewer upgrades, nursing homes, hospitals, even schools and community centers.
Farmers markets heralded as ‘engines of growth’ (Santa Fe New Mexican)
State and federal agriculture officials declared this week National Farmers Market Week at the Railyard on Saturday. Anne Alonzo, who heads efforts at U.S. Department of Agriculture to help farmers market crops, said that out of 8,500 farmers markets across the nation, the federal agency chose to introduce the proclamation — made by U.S Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack — at the Santa Fe’s Farmers Market because it’s a “thriving and a model market with over 5,000 customers a day.” “These are really engines of growth and they really produce a lot of foot traffic,” she said of farmers markets.
Agriculture Secretary Vilsack has announced available funding and changes to USDA's Biorefinery and Biobased Product Program (High Plains Journal)
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack has announced USDA is accepting applications for funding under a program that supports the production of advanced biofuels, renewable chemicals and biobased product manufacturing. “This critical financing will enhance our efforts to build a robust, rural bioeconomy by helping to expand the availability of biobased products and to increase the number of commercial-scale biorefineries in the country,” Vilsack said.
How the USDA Helps Grow Broadband Internet Access (State Tech Magazine)
Agriculture is not the department’s only mission as it helps bring connectivity to rural America. The federal government is a catalyst for bringing broadband Internet to rural areas of the country, but some of the major players involved may surprise you. An article in The Washington Post details how the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) gives loans to Internet providers in small farming communities so these rural areas can acquire high-speed Internet access.
Vilsack tells entrepreneurs to work with farmers (Hagstrom Report)
Budding entrepreneurs should “work with farmers” to solve problems in agriculture rather than criticizing them, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack told a mostly youthful audience today at an innovation lab in Washington. Vilsack’s hour-long talk was billed as “Food Innovation: A Chat with Tom Vilsack, Agriculture Secretary.” Members of the audience submitted questions on cards. “I want the folks who are here who are not farmers to understand what it is like to be a farmer,” Vilsack said. Farmers, he said, love the land, are devoted to what they do, wake up thinking they are good stewards and then pick up the newspaper and read criticisms or concerns about them and “feel a bit underappreciated.” He asked the group to help farmers develop ways to feed the world and treat animals humanely. Harris said she got many questions from the audience about his views on genetic modification. Vilsack said that asking him to choose between genetically modified foods and organic foods would be like asking him to decide which of his two sons he loved best. “I love them both equally,” Vilsack said. But he pointed out that Michael Dykes of Monsanto was in the audience, and said he believes that the companies that developed GMO seeds “did not do the best job of marketing.” Vilsack said he believes the best way to inform consumers of whether GMOs are in a product would be through the kind of app that 90 food companies led by Hershey are working on to list all ingredients and other information. Vilsack also said he hopes entrepreneurs can come up with ways to address global food security, food waste and revive the rural economy.
92 rural projects get USDA grants and loans to boost business (Farm Futures)
USDA announces $18.1 million worth of rural business grants and loans through its Rural Business Cooperative Service program. About $18.1 million in USDA Rural Business Cooperative Service loans and grants have been awarded to 92 projects, USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack said Wednesday.The grants and loans will help support the start-up or expansion of rural small businesses, USDA said, and join more than 20,000 previous grants and loans to more than 85,000 rural businesses the Rural Business Cooperative Service has already awarded.
USDA announces first investments in Rural Infrastructure Fund (Agri-Pulse)
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced the first round of investments in rural infrastructure projects through the U.S. Rural Infrastructure Opportunity Fund, which was created just over a year ago. USDA said that through the Fund and expanded public-private partnership, the department has facilitated $161 million in private capital investments in 22 critical water and community facilities projects in 14 states, maximizing the impact of USDA's own investments in job-creating rural infrastructure projects across the country.
Secretary Vilsack Visits 1776: Food Innovation Meets the USDA (1776 Blog)
On Wednesday, 1776 hosted the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture, Tom Vilsack, for a discussion on food innovation, policy and investment. During a packed fireside chat with 1776 Cofounder and Co-CEO, Donna Harris, Vilsack shared his insights about how the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is working to change our understanding of agriculture and our interaction with food. For Vilsack, food and agriculture innovations are centered around education and awareness. He repeatedly stated that open data and big data initiatives are driving younger eyeballs and tech-enabled startups to the USDA — which is helping spark innovation and the adoption of new technologies at unprecedented rates.
USDA’s Vilsack Pays Visit to Iowa Co-op (ECT)
The Agriculture Department is providing millions of dollars to local communities to increase access to broadband, improve electric infrastructure and expand smart grid technology. USDA might seem like an unlikely source of technological improvements, especially when they aren’t directly tied to agriculture, but Secretary Tom Vilsack sees the grants and loans as a key aspect of the agency’s mission. "The investments USDA is making today will deliver broadband to rural communities that are currently without high-speed internet service, or whose infrastructure needs to be upgraded.
US Surgeon General Visits Eastern Market In Celebration Of ‘National Farmers Market Week’ (CBS Detroit)
The U.S. Surgeon General stopped by Eastern Market on Saturday afternoon in celebration of National Farmers Market Week. Dr. Vivek Murthy came to see the Fair Food Network’s Double Up Food Bucks program in action, which allows low-income families to use food stamps to buy fresh fruits and vegetables at farmers markets. “We need to make sure that wherever people are — whether you’re shopping in a farmers market, a small retail store or at a big retail store — that fruits and vegetables are available at affordable prices,” Murthy told WWJ Newsradio 950’s Lauren Barthold. These stores include independent shops and a new pilot at Whole Foods Market in Midtown set to begin on August 15.
Listen
A JOB CREATOR FOR RURAL ECONOMIES
Broadcast Date: Thu, July 30, 2015
Three USDA Rural Development funding programs are assisting in start-up and expansion of rural small businesses. (Rod Bain and Rural Business Service Administrator Lillian Salerno)
LATEST EXAMPLES OF USDA RURAL INVESTMENT EFFORTS
Broadcast Date: Wed, July 29, 2015
The intial rural infrastructure investments from a public-private fund are helping to boost rural economies. (Rod Bain and Secretary Tom Vilsack)
ACTUALITY: RURAL INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITIES
Broadcast Date: Wed, July 29, 2015
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack explains public-private investment vehicles backed by USDA to encourage investment in rural infrastructure and community facilities.
TPP NEGOTIATIONS CONTINUE. AGRICULTURE HAS BIG STAKE IN TPP.
Broadcast Date: Tue, July 28, 2015
Agriculture has a major stake in negotiators being able to craft the Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement. Major negotiations are going on this week. (Gary Crawford and Secy' Tom Vilsack)
LATEST ROUND OF TPP NEGOTIATIONS UNDERWAY
Broadcast Date: Mon, July 27, 2015
The week long Trans - Pacific Partnership talks in Hawaii contain remaining issues, but hope for finalizing this trade deal. (Rod Bain and the US Trade Representative Office's Chief Ag Negotiator Darci Vetter)
Share
Final #USDARoadTrip stop: MI, where @POTUS signed the 2014 Farm Bill @michiganstateu while Sec. Vilsack looked on. pic.twitter.com/AiuUbNMKCp
— Dept. of Agriculture (@USDA) July 31, 2015
On the road in Santa Fe - Saluting farmers markets all the way http://t.co/MdnhbM0vNC #USDARoadTrip pic.twitter.com/sSy6HlsDmr
— Dept. of Agriculture (@USDA) July 31, 2015
#USDARoadtrip'ping to the Cornhusker State? Check out a craft vinegar producer in Cody, NE → http://t.co/02vPOdbKUh pic.twitter.com/S4G7guc6Z1
— Dept. of Agriculture (@USDA) July 30, 2015
Love pancakes & syrup? Take a #USDARoadTrip to VT to make manufacturing more energy efficient http://t.co/raivauRUeG pic.twitter.com/IFuhuOrsGB
— Dept. of Agriculture (@USDA) July 29, 2015
