USDA

National

Privacy advocates urge states not to comply with USDA requests for food stamp data

4:54pm May 13, 2025

One payment processor has so far signaled to states that it intends to turn over data about millions of Americans to the federal government even as privacy groups warn that the request is illegal.

National

USDA, DOGE demand states hand over personal data about food stamp recipients

3:55pm May 09, 2025

The Department of Agriculture is demanding sensitive data from states about more than 40 million food stamp recipients, as DOGE is amassing data for immigration enforcement.

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USDA chief says agency is trying to fill key jobs after paying 15,000 to leave

9:05pm May 07, 2025

Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins says the department will consider bringing back some employees who took the government's deferred resignation offer.

After paying people to leave, one federal agency is scrambling to fill positions

6:00am May 03, 2025

USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has opened up 73 jobs to internal candidates. They include roles just vacated by people who are receiving full pay and benefits through September.

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Gloved hands handle oral rabies vaccine bait

Health & Safety

Officials to distribute oral rabies vaccines to raccoons in western N.C.

11:07am April 01, 2025

by April Laissle

Vaccine baits coated in fishmeal will be dropped by air in 17 counties including Ashe, Avery and Watauga. When bitten, the bait releases liquid triggering an immune response that protects against infection.

Image shows second harvest food bank building

Politics & Government

Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest N.C. stands to lose $2M following USDA cuts

4:10pm March 19, 2025

by Paul Garber

Second Harvest Food Bank CEO Eric Aft says the cuts come at a time when the need is growing. In February the agency provided meals to more than 76,000 people in an 18-county area of Northwest North Carolina. That was an increase of more than 50 percent from just two years ago.

Nearly 6,000 USDA workers fired by Trump ordered back to work for now

12:43pm March 05, 2025

The U.S. Department of Agriculture must temporarily reinstate nearly 6,000 probationary employees fired since Feb. 13, according to a ruling by the Merit Systems Protection Board.

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USDA scholarship for students at historically Black colleges suspended

8:25pm February 23, 2025

by Associated Press

A federal scholarship aimed at boosting students from underserved and rural areas attending historically Black colleges and universities has been put on hold.

wetransfer_ddwyer_deep-roots-farm-jpg_2025-02-19_0154/DDwyer_Deep Roots Farm-25.jpg

National

Black farmers among those left in limbo amid federal funding freeze

5:00am February 20, 2025

The federal government has historically discriminated against Black farmers. The recent funding halt from the Trump administration presents yet another hurdle to those who have spent decades fighting for equity in farming.

A military vet and a scientist were securing America's food system. Trump fired them

5:00am February 20, 2025

More than 10,000 federal employees who had yet to complete their probationary periods have been fired by the Trump administration, including those who work to protect American agriculture.

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