U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced the creation of an undersecretary for trade and foreign agricultural affairs position in the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture (USDA) as part of a structural reorganization that elevates rural development as a department priority.
“Food is a noble thing to trade. This nation has a great story to tell and we’ve got producers here that produce more than we can consume,” says Secretary Perdue. “Our people in American agriculture have shown they can grow it, and we’re here to sell it in markets all around the world.”
The reorganization is intended to place agencies in a more logical order; under the existing structure, the Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS), which deals with overseas markets, and the Farm Service Agency (FSA), which handles domestic issues, were housed under one mission area, along with the Risk Management Agency (RMA). Situating the FAS under the new undersecretary for trade allows staff to sharpen their focus on foreign markets.
Additionally, a new undersecretary will be selected for a newly named Farm Production and Conservation mission area, which is to focus on domestic agricultural issues. Under this plan, the Rural Development agencies will report directly to the secretary of agriculture, and the undersecretary for natural resources and environment will retain supervision of the U.S. Forest Service. A reduction in USDA workforce is not part of the reorganization plan.