6. Investing in the Future Through Research, Education, and Economics

Four USDA agencies make up the Research, Education, and Economics (REE) mission area. They are the Agricultural Research Service (ARS), the Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service (CSREES), the Economic Research Service (ERS), and the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS). Together, these agencies have the Federal responsibility to discover and disseminate knowledge that spans the biological, physical, and social sciences related to agricultural research, economic analysis, statistics, extension, and higher education.

USDA leads the world in basic and applied research on problems challenging America’s food and fiber production system, and on ways to improve food supply, safety, and quality. How do research findings translate into results that benefit Americans? USDA research is an important tool for stimulating the Nation’s economy. For example, USDA research advances in agricultural biotechnology can help improve crop quality and yields of rice as well as reduce losses from pest damage. This helps this country build an agricultural system that is highly competitive in the global economy. Studies demonstrate that consumers reap the benefits of investing in agricultural research; every tax dollar invested in the U.S. agricultural system has paid back at least $1.35. These returns have been broadly shared through lower prices for American consumers, increased international competitiveness for farmers, jobs for working families, and increased profitability in agricultural industries.

REE works with land-grant institutions and industry to move research results into the marketplace to boost economic opportunity and improve the quality of life for all Americans. REE works with the State agricultural experiment stations at the land-grant universities to carry out a balanced program of fundamental and applied research.

To build an informed citizenry, and to provide the information base for market decisions, REE coordinates economic and social research. This research supports programs and policies across the Department, providing data, information, and economic and statistical analyses on topics such as rural development, the environment and natural resources, food safety, food prices, farm labor, farm income, financial conditions, commodity markets, and international trade. REE serves American agriculture and rural communities by providing meaningful, accurate, and objective statistical information. Forecasts and estimates for over 165 different crop and livestock commodities are provided annually to farmers, ranchers, and other agribusinesses. This information helps policymakers, Congress, and the public make informed decisions about issues related to food and fiber production.

REE also focuses on practical education that Americans can use in dealing with critical issues that affect their lives and the Nation’s future by linking research, science, and technology to the needs of people where they live and work. REE offers information on issues ranging from community economic development and health care concerns to food safety; water quality; children, youth, and families; and sustainable agriculture. For example, CSREES’ Families, 4-H, and Nutrition programs empower youth to become responsible contributing members of their communities.

The National Agricultural Library is the largest agricultural library in the world and one of three national libraries of the United States. As the Nation’s chief resource and service for agricultural information, NAL offers researchers, educators, policymakers, farmers, consumers, and the general public about 48 miles of bookshelves to peruse in a 14-story building or access to the library’s 2 million volumes through its computerized network or electronic bulletin board.

Accomplishment Highlights

Reducing America’s Food Losses
More than one-fourth of all food produced in the United States is wasted. An Economic Research Service (ERS) study, Estimating and Addressing America’s Food Losses, estimated food losses by retailers, food service establishments, and consumers at 96 billion pounds--or 26 percent of the edible food supply. Secretary Glickman released the study--the first of its kind in 20 years to examine and quantify food loss--in July, 1997, and its findings were widely disseminated in the national media, including USA Today, CNN Headline News, and ABC World News Tonight. This national attention helped generate public awareness and support for Secretary Glickman’s Food Recovery and Gleaning Initiative and the recent National Summit on Food Recovery and Gleaning.

New Machine Able To Kill Salmonella
ARS engineers in Wyndmoor, Pennsylvania, have built a machine that kills Salmonella on raw poultry. The machine heats the bird’s surface to 250 degrees Fahrenheit for 400 milliseconds and then cools it rapidly. This process works because Salmonella contamination of raw poultry is normally on the surface.

Vaccine Prevents Brucellosis
A vaccine for preventing brucellosis in cattle has been developed and evaluated for use in bison and elk in and around Yellowstone National Park. The new vaccine was evaluated and shown to be safe and effective in preventing and eradicating brucellosis in bison calves under experimental and field conditions.

Cooperation Helps Control Costly Noxious Weed
ARS researchers, in cooperation with the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, have identified, safety-tested, and released several beneficial leafy spurge feeding insects into North America. Ranchers, farmers, and land mangers are now using these insects to control leafy spurge. This non-native noxious weed has infested an estimated 5 million acres in 29 States and is estimated to cost the economies of North and South Dakota, Wyoming, and Montana $144 million annually.

Ag Census Moves to USDA
After over 150 years of being separate, the census of agriculture has been consolidated with the current agricultural statistics program at USDA. Nearly 70 full-time employees transferred from the Commerce Department’s U.S. Census Bureau to become part of the Census Division at USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS). The consolidation of census and NASS resources benefits the Government, respondents, and data users. Farmers and ranchers incur less burden because they will no longer be reporting information to two separate Federal Departments (Agriculture and Commerce).

Farmers on the Information Superhighway
Thirty-one percent of U.S. farms own or lease computers, and 20 percent use computers for their farm business, according to the first-ever farm operator survey conducted by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) to determine farm access to computers and the Internet. Some 13 percent of all farms in the United States have Internet access, ranging from 4 percent in Louisiana and Mississippi to 31 percent in New Jersey.

Special Survey Enumerates Minority-Owned Farms
NASS conducted a special survey to accurately enumerate minority-owned farm operations by contacting minority operators from the 1992 census to request their help in improving the mailing list for the 1997 Census of Agriculture. Extra outreach efforts were extended to American Indian operators and the 1997 census will count the number of American Indian operations on reservations for the first time.

Fund for Rural America Grants for Research, Education, and Extension
CSREES developed and carried out the $36.1 million competitive research, education, and extension grants component of the Fund for Rural America, including the award of $852,000 for 35 center planning grants in September 1997. Standard grants for an integrated, multi-functional approach to community-identified problem areas have been awarded beginning in early 1998.

Assisting Hispanic-Serving Institutions
CSREES awarded more than $1.4 million in grants to 13 Hispanic-serving institutions to carry out programs needed to attract and retain students capable of enhancing the Nation's food and agricultural scientific and professional workforce. These awards are the first to be made under the new competitive grants program designed to promote and strengthen Hispanic-serving institutions. The awards will be used for faculty preparation, curriculum design, library resources, student programs, and the use of technologies such as video conferencing to enhance learning.

Extension Grants for Tribal Colleges
USDA awarded $2 million for new extension work at 1994 land-grant institutions authorized in the Improving America’s Schools Act of 1994. The 1994 Native American land-grant institutions are located in 12 States that have 1862 land-grant universities. The Tribal Colleges Extension Program supports training and education in a wide variety of areas, including production agriculture, business management, community and family development, 4-H and youth leadership, natural resources and conservation, nutrition, diet, and health.

Small Farm Program Helps Improve Income
The Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service’s Small Farm Program is designed to improve income levels and the economic viability of small farms through public/private partnerships with universities and community organizations, encouraging research and education programs that meet these farmers’ specific needs.

Demand for and Availability of Credit in Rural America
Section 650 of the Federal Agriculture Improvement and Reform Act of 1996 instructed USDA to complete a study of the demand for and availability of credit in rural areas for agriculture, housing, and economic development. ERS was given the responsibility for drafting this report, with assistance from the Office of Policy and Planning in USDA’s Rural Development mission area. ERS instituted an advisory panel to provide outside advice and counsel, designed the study, and acquired and analyzed difficult-to-obtain data from a variety of Federal agencies. While localized financial market problems do exist in some rural communities, the report concludes that, in general, rural financial markets work reasonably well in serving the needs of rural America. The report was well received by Congress and the financial community and has been cited as support for a number of legislative proposals.

Climate Change’s Effect on U.S. Agriculture
Climate change is a global phenomenon with important implications for U.S. agriculture. In 1997, ERS prepared analyses on the effects of climate change and the possible implications of climate change mitigation policies. These analyses were presented as briefings for the Deputy Secretary’s Office, White House agencies, and Senate staff, and showed that (1) there is considerable ability for the agricultural sector to adapt to climate change, (2) regional impacts will differ, with northern parts of the country more likely to benefit and southern areas more likely to suffer negative effects, and (3) many uncertainties remain, stemming from an incomplete understanding of extreme events and the ability of farmers to adapt to those events. With regard to mitigation, the analysis reported on various options to sequester carbon in soils and showed the U.S. farm sector to be relatively more energy-intensive than other industrial sectors.

Grant Program Increases Low-Income Households’ Access to Food
In FY 1997, CSREES awarded 18 grants totaling $2.5 million under the Community Food Projects Competitive Grants Program. This program is intended to take a comprehensive approach to developing long-term solutions that help to ensure food security in communities by linking the food production and processing sectors to community development, economic opportunity, and environmental enhancement. The grant program will improve low-income households’ access to high-quality, affordable food and increase their self-sufficiency over their own food supply. The program will also expand economic opportunities for community residents through local business, job training, youth apprenticeship, school-to-work transition, and support for local food systems.

Study Analyzes Cost of Ensuring Safe Meat and Poultry
ERS conducted an economic analysis of the new meat and poultry inspection rules and published An Economic Assessment of Food Safety Regulations: The New Approach to Meat and Poultry Inspection, a report that shows the benefits and costs of reducing microbial pathogens and preventing foodborne illness. The new inspection rules require federally inspected processors and slaughterhouses to adopt Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) systems to identify potential sources of pathogen contamination and establish procedures to prevent contamination. The benefits of reducing pathogens, including lower medical costs of illness, lower productivity losses, and fewer premature deaths, range from $1.9 billion to $171.8 billion over 20 years, depending upon the level of pathogen control. These benefits will likely exceed the costs of HACCP, which are estimated at between $1.1 billion and $1.3 billion over 20 years.