[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 69 (Tuesday, May 15, 2012)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E800]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             RECOGNIZING THE USDA FOR 150 YEARS OF SERVICE

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                        HON. GERALD E. CONNOLLY

                              of virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, May 15, 2012

  Mr. CONNOLLY of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I rise to salute the United 
States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and its dedicated employees for 
150 years of service to America. By working with farmers across 
America, the USDA has built the most productive, efficient agricultural 
economy on earth. It has rescued whole regions from the Dust Bowl, 
diversified production in the South to end regional dependence on 
cotton, led efforts to restore estuaries like the Chesapeake Bay 
through conservation programs, financed rural development, and rebuilt 
agriculture in war-torn countries in partnership with the Armed 
Services.
  America's food security today stands in stark contrast to other 
industrialized countries which are heavily dependent on food imports. 
Only because of the USDA's work do we enjoy this security, which 
includes affordable food for working Americans. Today the USDA is 
working to ensure that food security includes healthy foods which 
address America's most challenging chronic health problems. Under 
Secretary Vilsack, the USDA is leading efforts to redevelop local food 
production. The benefits of this initiative are evident in my home 
state of Virginia, where growing wine, cheese, fruit, and vegetable 
production is bringing land back into production which had been fallow 
for decades. The USDA is much more than agriculture; it pursues a 
comprehensive program of rural development, and its recent efforts to 
strengthen local food supplies are emblematic of this comprehensive 
approach.
  The USDA is playing a central role in conserving America's natural 
resources, as it has since its inception. Photographs from the Works 
Progress Administration should serve as a reminder of the resources 
that would have been lost but for USDA leadership. Before we had 
comprehensive agricultural conservation programs, cubic miles of prime 
soils were being lost throughout the South and Midwest to erosion from 
wind and rain. The USDA pioneered soil conservation methods which 
ensured that these regions would remain productive for generations to 
come. Building on that early success, USDA conservation programs are 
responsible for reducing agricultural pollution entering the Chesapeake 
Bay and other estuaries, ensuring that Americans can enjoy productive 
fisheries as well as productive agricultural lands.
  In an era where government is disparaged all too frequently, the USDA 
is a shining example of the benefits of federal service. We never could 
have become the most powerful, prosperous nation on earth without the 
agency which worked with farmers to feed our armies and our workforce, 
and to conserve those natural resources that we will rely on for the 
next 150 years.

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