USDA is getting three new deputy undersecretaries, including a strong proponent of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, to help lead the department in the Biden administration.

USDA loosened regulatory requirements for hemp in a new rule issued Friday, giving producers more time to harvest their crops after testing for THC levels and not requiring they use laboratories registered with the Drug Enforcement Administration until the end of 2022.

USDA will buy another $1.5 billion of food to continue the Farmers to Families Food Box program, the department has announced.

The United States needs to change the way it thinks about responding to food emergencies in order to quickly get assistance to those who need it, well-known chef José Andrés said at Monday's Agri-Pulse Ag and Food Policy Summit.

On Capitol Hill, there are some signs of life for a big new coronavirus relief package after a presidential tweet Wednesday. Trump called on Republicans to support a “much higher” level of spending than they have.

The hemp sector is hopeful a recent USDA request for comment on multiple pending hemp regulations means the department will suspend the requirements before they become effective at the end of next month.

USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service is proposing a rule to strengthen oversight and enforcement of the organic supply chain, particularly imports.

The Agriculture Department makes a series of recommendations to Congress for addressing price volatility in cattle markets, but the industry was left in the dark about the results of an investigation into alleged price manipulation by beef processors. 

Questions linger about the efficiency of USDA's new Farmers to Families food box program and why the Agricultural Marketing Service gave contracts to some companies that appeared unqualified to fulfill them.