Tom Vilsack | Grist

A new direction on research at the USDA? 4
Posted 3 weeks, 3 days ago Paula Crossfield interviews some experts (more Pollan!) on what we need to know about agriculture.
USDA FAIL

Can the USDA really keep our food safe? 10
Posted 1 month ago Having read and listened to Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack's attempts at ground beef-related damage control in the wake of the recent food safety revelations, I'm left to wonder if the USDA simply needs to get out of the food safety business entirely.
A foot in both camps

Quick thoughts on the USDA’s ‘Know Your Farmer’ program 14
Posted 1 month, 3 weeks ago
After getting more details about the USDA's new "Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food" program, I'm both encouraged and skeptical. It's a great start, but the government's farm programs are still overwhelmingly tilted in favor of Big Ag.
Spare change for local food

USDA’s $65 million drop in the bucket 0
Posted 1 month, 3 weeks ago
The U.S. Department of Agriculture is so fired up about local food economies that it's coughing up $65 million for a new program called "Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food."
Caption needed! UPDATE: Caption found 21
Posted 2 months, 3 weeks ago
When you discover a picture of Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack posing with Cookie Monster and broccoli, it's caption contest time!
Forest gumption

New Obama forest plan leaves roadless rule intact 5
Posted 2 months, 3 weeks ago
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack laid out a broad vision for the U.S. Forest Service on Friday, promising strong conservation measures and an emphasis on restoring damaged forests.
Spray-and-trade

Can climate legislation survive the Senate Ag Committee’s embrace? 4
Posted 3 months, 1 week ago
Some have hoped that climate legislation would be strengthened in the Senate, but if the Agriculture Committee has any say, don't bet on it.
A shot in the farm

USDA study finds that climate bill will benefit farmers 1
Posted 3 months, 2 weeks ago
The climate and energy legislation that the House passed in June would increase revenues for farmers, according to a preliminary analysis released by the USDA. Could the report help convince farm-state senators to back a climate bill?
Senate Environment Committee Hearing - July 7, 2009

Opening remarks from Chu, Jackson, Vilsack, Salazar and Barbour 0
Posted 4 months ago
Notable quotable

Yet again, Vilsack bows to ethanol gods 82
Posted 4 months, 1 week ago
In what's becoming a ritual, USDA chief Tom Vilsack yet again declared his allegiance to ethanol.
Supermarket gothic

Food Inc. Director Robert Kenner speaks on the ills of the food system 2
Posted 4 months, 2 weeks ago
Food Inc. opened last week to critical acclaim and solid box office. Amid the hoopla, director Robert Kenner spoke to Grist about what he saw when he peered behind our food system's cloak.
Farm Crisis 2009

Stand up for rural America while you still can 4
Posted 4 months, 3 weeks ago
For the past six months, dairy farmers across the country have suffered a historic drop in milk prices while operating costs remain high. This is impacting mainly conventional and small to mid-size family dairy farmers -- the worst crisis most dairy farmers have faced in their entire careers. Without immediate action from Congress and the Obama administration, this current crisis could be the launching point for the final liquidation of the independent family farmer.
The administration

Key Obama advisers on climate and energy 0
Posted 5 months ago
President Barack Obama's key advisers on energy and climate issues include a former top aide to Al Gore, a Nobel Prize winner, a governor, and a gaggle of former members of Congress. Meet them.
Flu do they think they are?

Europeans demand investigation of the CAFO/swine flu link 1
Posted 5 months, 1 week ago
Remember swine flu? It's still spreading--and Europeans, at least, want the World Health Organization to seriously investigate links to factory hog farms.
The roadless traveled

Obama admin delays decision on development in national forests 0
Posted 5 months, 2 weeks ago
The Obama administration announced on Thursday that they are delaying a decision on policy guiding the construction of new roads and other development in areas of national forests for one year.
Fox in the Henhouse

Close friend of Big Meat may be put in charge of food safety 2
Posted 6 months ago
USDA chief Tom Vilsack is once again on the verge of stepping in it regarding his pick for food safety czar, i.e. the head of the USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service.
Hog wild

Uncomfortable facts about the swine flu outbreak 8
Posted 6 months ago
You can catch swine flu from raw pork after all -- and no one really knows if any U.S. pigs are infected.
Change we can devour

Vilsack’s USDA shakes things up 9
Posted 6 months ago
USDA honcho Tom Vilsack has generated plenty of criticism for his love of ethanol and GMOs. But over the past week, he's made some truly reform-minded decisions.
Yielding to reality

Biotech’s history of overpromising and underdelivering may be catching up with it 1
Posted 6 months, 2 weeks ago
Tom Philpott's post on USDA chief Tom Vilsack's comments regarding biotech deserves a bit more attention.
Techno beat

Vilsack: biotech will solve our ag problems 6
Posted 6 months, 3 weeks ago
USDA chief Tom Vilsack has been in Italy at the G8 meeting, talking ag policy with reporters. As the global hunger crisis lingers and climate-change and population fears fester, Vilsack is using the opportunity to push agri-biotech as the solution to the globe's food needs.