USDA
House Agriculture Appropriations Bill Passes Appropriations Committee
The House Appropriations Committee has released its draft bill and Committee Report for the fiscal year (FY) 2017 funding for the Department of Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration and Related Agencies. The bill passed the Subcommittee by on April 13 andĀ the full Commtitee on April 19. A list of amendments adopted during the full committee markup is available hereĀ (none affect the research and science agencies funded by the bill).Ā Details on the billās proposed funding for the Department of Agriculture (USDA) agencies importantĀ toĀ the social and behavioral sciences follow. Overall, the bill provides flat funding or very modest increases to…
Analysis of the FY 2016 Omnibus Appropriations Bill and Implications for Social and Behavioral Science Research
On December 15, House and Senate negotiators unveiled their final fiscal year (FY) 2016 omnibus appropriations bill, theĀ Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2016 (H.R. 2029), which includes all 12 of the individual appropriations bills and totals $1.15 trillion. Congress passed another short term continuing resolution (CR) on Wednesday to allow enough time for the House and Senate to pass the massive spending bill and for the President to sign it, which he has indicated he would. Policymakers now have until December 22 to achieve final passage. Assuming the House can pass the bill on Friday-which will require the support of several…
USDA Starts Collecting Data on Post-Harvest Food Safety Practices
The U.S. Department of Agricultureās (USDA) National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), under an agreement with the Economic Research Service (ERS), has begun collecting data on food safety practices from fruit and vegetable packers and processors. The survey, the 2015 Produce Post-Harvest Microbial Food Safety Practices Survey, marks the first time since 1998 that USDA has collected such data. Information from the survey will be used to understand how businesses are implementing the 2011 Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA). In addition, ERS will use the data to document changes in food safety practices, examine costs associated with compliance with the FSMA,…
Senate Agriculture Appropriations Bill Advances through Committee
The Senate Appropriations Committee approved its version of the FY 2016 Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Bill (S. 1800) on July 16, after the billās approval by the Agriculture Subcommittee earlier in the week. Among the agencies funded in the bill are the U.S. Department of Agricultureās (USDA) principal statistical agencies, the Economic Research Service (ERS) and National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), and the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), which houses the Departmentās main competitive grants program, the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI). The House Appropriations Committee passed its version of…
House Agriculture Appropriations Bill Would Cut USDA Research and Statistics
The House Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee advanced its draft bill to the full committee on June 18. A full committee markup originally scheduled for June 25 was postponed. Among the agencies funded in the bill are the U.S. Department of Agricultureās (USDA) research and statistical agencies, the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), the Economic Research Service (ERS), and the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS). The Committee Report is available here. COSSA has joined the Friends of Agricultural Statistics and Analysis (FASA), a new coalition of stakeholders who care about timely,…
ERS Reports on Fast Food Purchasing Behavior
The Department of Agricultureās Economic Research Service (ERS) has released a report, āThe Role of Time in Fast-Food Purchasing Behavior in the United States,ā which examines the factors impacting how Americans consume fast food. The study, conducted using data from the Bureau of Labor Statisticsā American Time Use Survey, assessed the impact of time-use behaviors, prices, sociodemographic characteristics, and labor-force participation on fast food purchases. It finds that those who purchase fast food on a given day spend less time engaged in āprimaryā eating (eating while not doing something else), sleeping, doing housework, and watching television than the population average….
Agriculture Census Highlights Organic Farms
The National Agricultural Statistical Service (NASS) released findings from the 2012 Census of Agricultureās Special Organics Tabulation illustrating some key differences between organic and conventional farms. Forty-two percent of organic farms sell directly to consumers, compared with only 7 percent of all U.S. farms. Organic farms are also more likely to participate in non-traditional markets, such as marketing directly to retail outlets, producing value-added products, or distributing products through farm-shares or CSAs (community-supported agriculture). Organic farms also invest more in renewable energy production. More on the Census is available on the NASS website. Back to this issueās table of contents.
NASS Invites Nominations to Advisory Committee
The National Agricultural Statistical Service (NASS) is seeking to fill six open seats on its Advisory Committee on Agricultural Statistics. The Advisory Committee ādraws on the experience and expertise of its members to form a collective judgment concerning agriculture data collected and the statistics issued by NASS. This input is vital to keep current with shifting data needs in the rapidly changing agricultural environment and keeps NASS informed of emerging issues in the agriculture community that can affect agriculture statistics activities.ā Members are appointed to two-year terms by the Secretary of Agriculture and represent fields and disciplines including production, agricultural…
NASS Invites Suggestions for Next Census of Agriculture
The National Agricultural Statistical Service (NASS) is seeking comments from the public on changes for the 2017 Census of Agriculture. Conducted every five years, the Census provides detailed information on nearly every facet of U.S. agriculture down to the county level. In a press release, NASS Associate Administrator Renee Picanso said, āMany industries want data that we currently donāt collectā¦There are also some data that people think are no longer relevant with changing trends in agriculture. This is the time to express those ideas and concerns.ā Comments may be submitted via an online form. NASS will notify the public before…
ERS Presents on Local Impacts of Oil and Natural Gas Production
Although the expansion in production of shale-derived natural gas over the past decade or so has reshaped the U.S. energy landscape, until recently, the primary source of data on oil and natural gas production stopped at the state level. For researchers interested in the impacts of these shifts in energy production at the local level, this left the picture murky. However, a data set released this spring by the U.S. Department of Agricultureās (USDA) Economic Research Service (ERS) provides more granular data: County-level Oil and Gas Production in the U.S.Jeremy Weber, a research economist in ERSā Resource and Rural Economics…