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In 1862 the majority of the people in America were farmers. In order to grow their crops, they were in need of
good seed and information. Due to pressure from farming organizations for improved services, President Lincoln
established the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). The new department was "to acquire and diffuse
among the people of the United States useful information on subjects connected with agriculture."
President Lincoln called it the "people's department"
because of its ability to improve the lives of so many different Americans in so many different ways.
Today fewer than 2% of the people in this country are farmers. The USDA continues Lincoln's legacy by serving
all Americans. This includes the farmers as well as everyone who eats, wears clothes, lives in a house,
or visits a rural area or a national forest. The USDA has offices or committees in nearly every county of the United States
and personnel stationed around the world, providing food assistance to low-income households and supporting production
agriculture, conservation, land management, international trade and marketing, economic development and food safety.
USDA agencies carry out these responsibilities by operating more than 200 programs through the following 7 mission areas:
- Farm and Foreign Agricultural Services
- Food, Nutrition and Consumer Services
- Food Safety
- Marketing and Regulatory Programs
- Natural Resources and Environment
- Research, Education and Economics
- Rural Development
Each mission area is a distinct organization with one or more operating agencies. Food Safety is comprised
of one agency, the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS). Being a part of FSIS makes you a part of a
much larger entity, the United States Department of Agriculture.
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| Federal Inspection & Food Safety
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