By Crystal Swann
February 1, 2010

When most people think of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), they think of food. In his January 22 address to the nation's Mayors, Agriculture Secretary Thomas Vilsack made it clear that the Agriculture department is more than school lunches and farming. Vilsack highlighted an array of programs and initiatives available through USDA to cities, ranging from housing programs to programs that install and expand access to broadband technology. "Virtually every aspect of your job as mayor matches up very nicely with what USDA does," he said.

USDA will provide over $6 billion annually in guaranteed home loans, creating nearly 130,000 opportunities for working families to achieve home ownership. USDA is also engaged in enhancing public infrastructure through initiatives such as its community facilities grant program which is used to build fire stations and police stations, and through the Forest Service, which works on the maintenance and building of roads related to access to America's national forests.

Through the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act (ARRA), USDA is working to create the framework for a 21st century America. "There's no way we can be competitive with access to the tools such as high'speed Internet access and broadband," Vilsack said. "With [a budget of] nine and a half billion, USDA is helping to build out broadband projects."

USDA is engaged in accelerating the energy title of the Farm bill, making hundreds of millions of dollars available to companies that want to build refineries. "It's an opportunity to build a new energy dynamic in this country where we can take control of our own energy destiny," said Vilsack.

Food Production, Programs

While highlighting the breadth of the USDA's scope of work, Vilsack reassured the mayors that food and feeding programs are still critical components of his department. He stressed that connecting rural farms and food producers with distributors in urban centers is of vital importance. "We will be investing in food processing facilities that will be located in and near cities, allowing food produced in that region to be linked to schools, to institutional purchases, to jails, to colleges and universities, creating additional markets and economic activity that retains wealth in regions."

In addition, Vilsack pointed to the SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition and Assistance Program) program as an example of funding that directly impacts the bottom line of cities. "The SNAP program formerly known as Food Stamps is an economic driver. It was a part of the ARRA because there's no more immediate stimulus than investing in food."

Vilsack stressed that there is an opportunity this year with the upcoming reauthorization of the child nutrition programs to make a bold statement about the importance of nutrition. He encouraged mayors weigh in to help strengthen and improve the reauthorization bill.

Vilsack further expressed then urgency of improving the quality of meals served in schools. Citing findings from an Institute of Medicine report, the Secretary noted that school lunches contain "too much sodium, too much sugar, not enough fruits, vegetables and low fat dairy products and far too many empty calories." In addition, the Secretary called for an expansion of the school breakfast program, and pledged to partner with mayors to implement summer feeding programs.