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U.S. Department of Agriculture
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certified organic USDA poster from the Dust Bowl era USDA MyPlate dietary guidelines map of the National Mall, Washington, D.C. USDA MyPyramid dietary guidelines USDA Food Guide Pyramid
Discover
The Colosseum, Rome, Italy. Giant amphitheatre built in Rome under the Flavian emperors. (ancient architecture; architectural ruins)
New Seven Wonders of the World
Secret Service Agent Listens To Earpiece
Secret Service Code Names of 11 U.S. Presidents
Parsons Weems' Fable, oil on canvas by Grant Wood, 1939; in the Amon Carter Museum of American Art. Catalog entry: The historian Mason Locke Weems, commonly known by his clerical title, Parson Weems, pulls back a curtain to point at 6-year-old George Washington. Bearing an adult head and holding an axe, George gazes blankly up at his father, Augustine, who questions his son while holding a partially cut cherry tree. All of this takes place in front of a 20th-century brick building, which Wood modeled after his own home in Iowa. The scene illustrates the fable of Washington and the cherry tree, which Weems invented in 1806 for the first president's biography. Wood playfully suggests the artifice of the tale here, presenting the story in the manner of a costumed stage play rather than a real event. Amid the action, two Black figures pick cherries in the background, a reference to Washington' slaveholding past and a reminder of of what often gets left out in historical mythmaking.
Did George Washington Really Say, “I Can’t Tell a Lie”?
The Lost Colony of Roanoke, North Carolina, where 115 people mysteriously disappeared c. 1590. John White discovers the word Croatoan carved onto a tree upon his return to the deserted Roanoke Colony in 1590
The Lost Colony of Roanoke
In this aerial photo, structures are damaged and destroyed October 15, 2005 in Balakot, Pakistan. It is estimated that 90% of the city of Balakot was leveled by the earthquake. The death toll in the 7.6 magnitude earthquake that struck northern Pakistan on October 8, 2005 is believed to be 38,000 with at least 1,300 more dead in Indian Kashmir. SEE CONTENT NOTES.
6 of the World’s Deadliest Natural Disasters
Young man skeet shooting with airborne shell
6 Unusual Olympic Sports
January 21, 2019: Superbowl LIII will be played at Atlanta's Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Sunday, February 3, 2019 against the New England Patriots and the Los Angeles Rams.
What Was the Super Bowl’s First Blockbuster Commercial?

U.S. Department of Agriculture

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Also known as: USDA
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Last Updated: • Article History
Quick Facts
Date:
1862 - present
Areas Of Involvement:
origins of agriculture
national forest
Related People:
Ezra Taft Benson
See all related content

News •

Agriculture Department tries to rehire fired workers tied to bird flu response • Feb. 19, 2025, 9:24 PM ET (AP)
Trump officials want to ban junk food from SNAP. Past efforts show it's not easy to do • Feb. 19, 2025, 9:20 AM ET (AP)
As egg prices soar, Trump administration plans new strategy to fight bird flu • Feb. 18, 2025, 5:11 PM ET (AP)
Anger, chaos and confusion take hold as federal workers face mass layoffs • Feb. 14, 2025, 11:31 PM ET (AP)
The Latest: Federal workers face mass layoffs • Feb. 14, 2025, 7:21 PM ET (AP)

U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), executive division of the U.S. federal government in charge of programs and policies relating to the farming industry and the use of national forests and grasslands. Formed in 1862, the USDA works to stabilize or improve domestic farm income, develop foreign markets, curb poverty and hunger, protect soil and water resources, make credit available for rural development, and ensure the quality of food supplies.

This article was most recently revised and updated by Jeff Wallenfeldt.