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ExpectMore.govExpectMore.gov home pageEXPECT FEDERAL PROGRAMS TO PERFORM WELL, AND BETTER EVERY YEAR.
Program Assessment

Program

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Federal Grain Inspection Services

USDA's Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration facilitates grain trade through regulation, information, and inspection and weighing services to ensure that grain markets are efficient, transparent, and free from deceptive or fraudulent trading practices.

Rating

What This Rating Means

PERFORMING
Moderately Effective

In general, a program rated Moderately Effective has set ambitious goals and is well-managed. Moderately Effective programs likely need to improve their efficiency or address other problems in the programs' design or management in order to achieve better results.
  • The agency's commodity standards describe quality attributes of grain and are used by buyers and sellers around the world as a common language of trade. Market participants also rely on the agency's process verification program to accurately differentiate quality factors and its inspection and weighing services (a fee-for-service activity) to obtain an official inspection certificate.
  • Grain inspection is not a service unique to the Federal government, as a number of private sector companies also offer a variety of grain inspection services. In addition, the agency also delegates the authority to perform inspections to a number of state departments of agriculture as a part of its official inspection system.
  • GIPSA's performance measures provide an indication of the agency's success in promoting fair and transparent marketing of grain. First, it tracks the percentage of U.S. grain production that is traded without complaint or disruption. Secondly, GIPSA evaluates the percentage of market driven quality attributes for which the agency provides standards.

Improvement Plan

About Improvement Plans

We are taking the following actions to improve the performance of the program:

  • Improving how data is collected, analyzed and integrated as part of its fee structure by examining the assumptions that underlie the fee structure.
  • Delegating official inspection services to private sector companies on a port-by-port basis.
  • Work with OMB to determine the best approach for adapting to diminished demand for its rice inspection services, pending the outcome of workforce restructuring.

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