The Conservation Effects Assessment Project ( CEAP ) was established in 2002 to quantify the environmental impact of the United States Department of Agriculture 's (USDA) conservation program. The project focuses on how watersheds are affected. CEAP monitored 14 benchmark watershed sites. The CEAP's vision is to enhance " natural resources and healthier ecosystems through improved conservation effectiveness and better management of agricultural landscapes . The goal is "to improve efficacy of conservations practices and programs by quantifying conservation effects and providing the science and education base needed to enrich conservation planning, implementation, management decisions, and policy."
19-655: The Soil Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) is supported by the USDA Agricultural Research Service . It is a river basin scale model used to quantify the impact of land management practices in large watersheds. This tool is located in Grassland, Soil and Research Laboratory in Temple, Texas . Sustaining the Earth's Watershed-Agricultural Research Data Systems (STEWARDS) was created by a group called
38-478: A Toxoplasma gondii ( T. gondii ) research program, which experimented on cats infected with the parasite, from 1982 until 2018. The prevalence of T. gondii parasite has been reduced by 50% in the U.S. As of September 2018, which the ARS claims is a result of their research. The USDA has since discontinued the use of cats in their research amid acute accusations of animal abuse, and a lack of meaningful contribution to
57-768: Is located in the Jamie L. Whitten Building on Independence Avenue in Washington, D.C., and the headquarters staff is located at the George Washington Carver Center (GWCC) in Beltsville, Maryland. For 2018, its budget was $ 1.2 billion. ARS conducts scientific research for the American public. Their main focus is on research to develop solutions to agricultural problems and provide information access and dissemination to: ARS research complements
76-713: Is the principal in-house research agency of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). ARS is one of four agencies in USDA's Research, Education and Economics mission area. ARS is charged with extending the nation's scientific knowledge and solving agricultural problems through its four national program areas: nutrition , food safety and quality; animal production and protection; natural resources and sustainable agricultural systems; and crop production and protection. ARS research focuses on solving problems affecting Americans every day. The ARS Headquarters
95-892: Is the world's largest agricultural research complex. Other D.C. area locations include the United States National Agricultural Library and the United States National Arboretum . ARS also has six major human nutrition research centers that focus on solving a wide spectrum of human nutrition questions by providing authoritative, peer-reviewed, science-based evidence. The centers are located in Arkansas, Maryland, Texas, North Dakota, Massachusetts (the Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging ), and California. ARS scientists at these centers study
114-719: The Food and Drug Administration and the United States Environmental Protection Agency . ARS disseminates much of its research results through scientific journals, technical publications, Agricultural Research magazine, and other forums. Information is also distributed through ARS's National Agricultural Library (NAL). ARS has more than 150 librarians and other information specialists who work at two NAL locations—the Abraham Lincoln Building in Beltsville, Maryland; and
133-726: The National Agricultural Library . Among its research programs are Air Quality; Animal Health; Crop Production; Crop Protection and Quarantine; Food Animal Production; Food Safety; Global Change ; Human Nutrition; Integrated Farming Systems; Manure and Byproduct Utilization; Methyl Bromide Alternatives; Plant Biological and Molecular Processes; Plant Diseases; Plant Genetic Resources, Genomics, and Genetic Improvement; Quality and Utilization of Agricultural Products; Rangeland, Pasture, and Forages; Soil Resource Management; Veterinary, Medical, and Urban Entomology; and Water Quality and Management. The center's Harvest for
152-581: The National Agricultural Research Center , is a unit of the United States Department of Agriculture 's Agricultural Research Service . It is located in unincorporated Prince George's County , Maryland , with sections within the Beltsville census-designated place . The BARC is named for Henry A. Wallace , former United States vice president and secretary of agriculture. BARC houses the Abraham Lincoln Building of
171-1277: The U.S. National Poultry Research Center in Athens, Georgia . Other notable ARS facilities include Northern Great Basin Experimental Range in Oregon, and formerly the Plum Island Animal Disease Center off Long Island . Several ARS research units focus on pests, diseases, and management practices of horticultural crops. The Cereal Disease Laboratory is located on the campus of the University of Minnesota in Saint Paul . It primarily hosts research into rusts and Fusaria of cereals. The San Joaquin Valley Agricultural Sciences Center in Parlier, California conducts research on specialty crops including grapes, citrus, almonds, alfalfa, peaches, pomegranates, and many others. Several research locations throughout
190-614: The DC Reference Center in Washington, D.C. NAL provides reference and information services, document delivery, interlibrary loan and interlibrary borrowing services to a variety of audiences. Prior to the inception of ARS, agricultural research was first conducted under the umbrella of the Agricultural Department in the U.S. Patent Office in 1839. It was created to collect statistics, distribute seeds and compile and distribute pertinent information. In 1862
209-671: The Hungry program donates about 75,000 pounds (34 metric tons) of fruits and vegetables each year for distribution to local charities, in conjunction with volunteers from the community who do much of the labor of harvesting. Each February, BARC hosts the Washington's Birthday Marathon , the eighth oldest marathon in the United States. During the tornado outbreak of September 24, 2001 , the BARC facilities sustained extensive damage as
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#1732783055098228-735: The US also house germplasm collections of plant species important for agricultural and industrial uses as part of the National Genetic Resources Program . From the very beginning the Department of Agriculture and in turn the Agricultural Research Service has been focused on improving not only the farming industry but also the quality of food and the health of Americans. In 1985, technology to produce lactose-free milk, yogurt, and ice cream
247-430: The USDA was created and agricultural research was moved to its department. That same year, the department issued its first research bulletin on the sugar content of grape varietals and their suitability for wine. Six years later the USDA would begin its first research on animal diseases, specifically hog cholera, which was causing devastating losses at the time. In the early 1900s the USDA began analyzing food composition and
266-573: The Watershed Assessment Studies a team within the CEAP. STEWARDS is a system that consists of a database to allow users to search and analyze various watershed conditions. The anticipated benefits include data preservation, faster data access, and improved ability to collaborate research between watersheds. Lead USDA agencies Additional partners Agricultural Research Service The Agricultural Research Service ( ARS )
285-693: The field in recent years (only three of thirteen papers published about T. gondii by the ARS were published after the year 2000). More recently, the ARS has focused research on genetics and plant and animal DNA. Their research has developed pest-resistant corn, faster growing plants and fish, and a focus on plant and animal genome research and mapping. Outside of scientific research, the ARS has worked to release databases on food components in order to assist consumers with making informed decisions about food choices. Henry A. Wallace Beltsville Agricultural Research Center The Henry A. Wallace Beltsville Agricultural Research Center ( BARC ), also known as
304-874: The first studies of nutrition and the effects of cooking and processing foods were conducted. Finally, in 1953 the Agricultural Research Service was created to be the USDA's primary scientific research agency. ARS supports more than 2,000 scientists and post docs working on approximately 690 research projects within 15 National Programs at more than 90 research locations. The ARS is divided into 5 geographic areas: Midwest Area, Northeast Area, Pacific West Area, Plains Area, and Southeast Area. ARS has five major regional research centers: The research centers focus on innovation in agricultural practices, pest control, health, and nutrition among other things. Work at these facilities has given life to numerous products, processes, and technologies. ARS' Henry A. Wallace Beltsville Agricultural Research Center (BARC) in Beltsville, Maryland ,
323-661: The role of food and dietary components in human health from conception to advanced age. The ARS also offers the Culture Collection, which is the largest public collection of microorganisms in the world, containing approximately 93,000 strains of bacteria and fungi. The ARS Culture Collection is housed at the National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research (NCAUR) ARS operates the U.S. Horticultural Research Laboratory in Fort Pierce, Florida , and
342-411: The work of state colleges and universities, agricultural experiment stations, other federal and state agencies, and the private sector. ARS research may often focus on regional issues that have national implications, and where there is a clear federal role. ARS also provides information on its research results to USDA action and regulatory agencies and to several other federal regulatory agencies, including
361-485: Was developed through the Agricultural Research Service. The grape breeding program, currently located in Parlier, CA which began in 1923, developed seedless grapes and continues to release new grapevine varieties with improved traits. The ARS Citrus and Subtropical Products Laboratory in Winter Haven, Florida, actively works to improve the taste of orange juice concentrate. The Agricultural Research Service had
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