With technology readily at the fingertips of many consumers, USDA is continuously searching for innovative ways to deliver useful information to Americans right where they can easily find and utilize it. Enter the Foodkeeper app, launched in 2015, which makes it easier to practice food safety at home by offering consumers valuable storage advice and food safety information on their mobile device for more than 400 commonplace food and beverage items.
Last week, we were excited to announce an update to the app which now includes Spanish and Portuguese languages, broadening Foodkeeper’s audience to millions of additional people who can be armed with the knowledge to keep their families safe.
Developed by USDA in collaboration with the Food Marketing Institute (FMI) and Cornell University’s Department of Food Science, Foodkeeper helps educate consumers about proper handling and storage for food items like baby food, dairy and egg products, meat, poultry, produce and seafood. If there is a question about what the “best by” date means or how to properly prepare and store food, the Foodkeeper app can likely answer it.
You can hear David Fikes, Vice President of FMI, explain the strategy behind developing a consumer-focused food safety app. The app is free and is available in Google Play for Android and in the App Store for Apple. Just type in Foodkeeper.
Join us throughout the month of July as we explore the incredible progress we’ve made since 2009 to update and modernize America’s food safety system and standards. Follow along on usda.gov, on the USDA blog and by using #USDAResults, or catch up on Chapter VII on our Medium site.
 In July, we’ll explore the incredible progress we’ve made since 2009 to update and modernize America’s food safety system and standards.
 USDA is working closely with FDA and the specialty crop industry to help address concerns and research needs as they work to implement the produce safety rule. One resource to help growers address food safety issues is the new Specialty Crop Multi-State Program administered by USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS).
 Consumer demand for safe, high-quality, additive-free packaged foods is growing. Thanks to two recent investments in innovative food processing technology based on microwave energy, Washington State University (WSU) is advancing toward meeting this demand.
Investment in Novel Technologies Advances Food Safety, Quality
Its summer and specialty crops – fruits, vegetables, tree nuts and dried fruits – fill our plates with color, taste and nutrition. Consumers are finding their favorite fresh produce in the grocery store or their farmers market. Other specialty crops like cut flowers and nursery crops lend beauty and interest to our homes and yards. And the growers responsible for the produce are making sure it is safe through the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA).
USDA Grants Help Specialty Crop Industry Build Food Safety Partnerships
Its summer and specialty crops – fruits, vegetables, tree nuts and dried fruits – fill our plates with color, taste and nutrition. Consumers are finding their favorite fresh produce in the grocery store or their farmers market. Other specialty crops like cut flowers and nursery crops lend beauty and interest to our homes and yards. And the growers responsible for the produce are making sure it is safe through the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA).
Using Market Data to Feed the World
In 2050, there will be about 9 billion people in the world. How do you feed 9 billion people? Clearly, we need more food, greater production, and more efficient processes, but how do we achieve that and how does that translate to success?
The U.S. Food Safety System Has Come A Long Way in 50 Years
By the time this blog posts today, most readers will have already enjoyed at least one meal. Over their breakfast—fresh fruit, a bacon and egg sandwich, or maybe a grab-n-go energy bar—Americans were probably thinking about all the tasks that meal would fuel them to do for the day, and not whether their food could make them ill.
Alaska Beavers Entertain Web Cam Viewers Around the World
Two beavers sleep peacefully in their den on Steep Creek in Juneau, Alaska, never realizing they are being watched via a hidden infrared camera. Hundreds of viewers tune-in to a live video feed on the U.S. Forest Service YouTube Channel throughout the day to see the beavers come and go, breathing rhythmically as they nap and then stretch, chew and scratch an occasional itch.
Foodkeeper App 3.0 Is Now Available
What are some of the new features in a USDA app that helps consumers determine if food in their home is safe to eat? (Rod Bain. Secretary Tom Vilsack. David Fikes of the Food Marketing Institute.)
Actuality: Some Alarming Numbers on Opioid and Heroin Abuse
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, on a phone call with reporters Tuesday, giving some of the alarming numbers on Opioid and Heroin Abuse.
Iowa gets $4 million in drug addiction funds in Obama plan (Associated Press)
Under President Barack Obama’s proposal to help ease a growing national problem related to drug addiction Iowa would get an additional $4 million to help expand treatment. U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, appointed by Obama to oversee the administration’s battle against a growing opioid addiction problem, says current drug abuse bills in Congress don’t provide enough money.
USDA Head Points to Progress, Urges More Conservation to Slow Pollution (Greeneville Sun)
U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack championed the progress made by both regulators and farmers to curb agriculture-related water pollution but still called for increased conservation efforts from each of the 50 states. Vilsack, a Democrat rumored to be on Hillary Clinton's short list for vice president, didn't voice support for an executive order to halt chemical and manure runoff into waterways.
The Resurgence of Black Farmers (YES! Magazine)
Cather Woods, 74, rises early to start the day before the Texas heat has a chance to wake up. She smiles as she steps onto the soil she’s nurtured for years. Inhaling the fresh air, she looks at the young pines under the rising sun, and, finally, she greets the cows excited by her arrival.
Wisconsin among 12 states to share $44 million for wetland conservation (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)
Governmental agencies and programs they administer on public land have long been significant to conservation in America. But work on private land — often conducted by property owners — plays an important role in managing and restoring wildlife habitat, too. And arguably many of the most critical projects help protect sensitive natural areas in the midst of developed or "working" landscapes. A U.S. Department of Agriculture program that assists with conservation on private and tribal agricultural lands will provide $44 million over the next three years to partners in 12 states, including Wisconsin.
Vilsack: [Editorial] Urgent fix needed for Forest Service fire budget (The San Diego Union-Tribune)
California is in the midst of a massive forest die off, with 66 million dead trees, 26 million of which have died since October. Drought, beetles and climate change have taken a huge toll on the state’s forests. These trees are fuel waiting to feed a fire, and when we can’t remove them, the consequences are deadly. So it’s no surprise that Gov. Jerry Brown and Sens. Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer wrote to me requesting that I direct the U.S. Forest Service to do everything in its power to respond to the tree mortality crisis facing their state.
 
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