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Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., said that the United States Department of Agriculture rejected his request for documents pertaining to its collaboration with the Mexican government to increase the number of Mexican nationals receiving food stamps. “USDA rebuffed initial requests from my staff to hand over basic documents concerning the Administration’s partnership with Mexico to implement this program,” Sessions said in a statement this afternoon. “I have now laid out in a letter precisely what information USDA needs to turn over. It should be provided at once.” USDA spokeswoman Alyn Kiel told told

The Mexican government has been working with the United States Department of Agriculture to increase participation in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), or food stamps. USDA has an agreement with Mexico to promote American food assistance programs, including food stamps, among Mexican Americans, Mexican nationals and migrant communities in America. “USDA and the government of Mexico have entered into a partnership to help educate eligible Mexican nationals living in the United States about available nutrition assistance,” the USDA explains in a brief paragraph on their “Reaching Low-Income Hispanics With Nutrition Assistance” web page. “Mexico will help disseminate this information...

The Mexican government has been working with the United States Department of Agriculture to increase participation in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), or food stamps. USDA has an agreement with Mexico to promote American food assistance programs, including food stamps, among Mexican Americans, Mexican nationals and migrant communities in America. Read more: http://dailycaller.com/2012/07/19/usda-partnering-with-mexico-to-boost-food-stamp-participation/#ixzz216eEQ2WL

The Spanish-language radio ads composed a 10-part miniseries called "Hope Park." In it, the characters were shown persistently trying to convince a character named "Diana" to go on food stamps -- known these days as SNAP, or the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program -- even though her husband works and she doesn't think she needs it. "I don't need help from anyone," Diana says in Episode 4. "My husband makes enough to take care of us." But her friends are persistent, and by Episode 10 Diana is enrolled and singing the program's praises.

Voter ID has gotten large amounts of media attention, but residents of rural areas are concerned about another identification issue that has remained largely ignored: chicken ID. ... The U.S. Department of Agriculture's proposed rules for Animal Disease Traceability, developed in August 2011, are now in their final stages. They require identification of farm animals, such as poultry and cattle, that cross state lines. Many farmers worry the rules would send them on a literal wild goose chase, forcing them to catch and hold down each bird to attach an identification tag. Read more: http://times247.com/articles/88feds-foist-chicken-id-on-frustrated-farmers6#ixzz20XcTgF3L

The government has been targeting Spanish speakers with radio “novelas” promoting food stamp usage as part of a stated mission to increase participation in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), or food stamps. Each novela, comprising a 10-part series called “PARQUE ALEGRIA,” or “HAPPINESS PARK,” presents a semi-dramatic scenario involving characters convincing others to get on food stamps, or explaining how much healthier it is to be on food stamps. The majority of the episodes end with the announcer encouraging the listener to tune in again to see if the skeptic applies for benefits or learns to understand the importance...

Q. What is APHIS proposing? A. APHIS is proposing to revise its definition of “retail pet store” to close a loophole that has in some cases threatened the health of pets sold sight unseen over the Internet and via phone- and mail-based businesses. Under the current definition of “retail pet store,” which was developed over 40 years ago and predates the Internet, some breeders selling pets are taking advantage of a loophole that improperly exempts them from meeting the basic requirements of the Animal Welfare Act (AWA). The proposed rule will close this loophole, ensuring that animals sold over the...

This article was written by Cassandra Anderson and originally published at MorphCity.com The Utah Department of Agriculture and Food is promoting the Utah Garden Challenge in order to collect information about independent food production for the USDA. The Utah Garden Challenge is a voluntary contest to register 10,000 gardens. The data mining project has a broad interest in any "resource" who is growing food: Whether you grow a tomato in a pot, a row in a community garden, have backyard gardens, a CSA or working fruit and vegetable farm, we want to hear from you because you are an important...

One in seven Americans are on food stamps, but the government is pushing to enroll more — in many instances working to overcome Americans’ “pride,” self-reliance or failure to see a need. “Our common goal is to increase participation in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program,” the United States Department of Agriculture explains on its “Outreach Toolkits” page. “Our purpose is to ensure that those going through difficult times can feed their families healthy, nutritious food. By working as a team, we can accomplish these goals.” The USDA has adopted a range of strategies and programs designed to bring more people...

To view other stories of cronyism, visit here. Susan Ferrechio at the Washington Examiner writes about the the massive farm bill making its way through congress, and how there are lots of little programs thrown into the bill: But billions of dollars in the legislation are also dedicated to entities like the Market Access Program, which provides $200 million a year in taxpayer dollars to trade associations to promote U.S. products overseas.Espree, the company that produces the styling spray for dogs (“Leaves the coat with specks of shiny glitter and aroma of Candy Cane”) was aided by a taxpayer subsidy...

While spending on the food stamp program has increased 100 percent under President Barack Obama, the government continues to push more Americans to enroll in the welfare program. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has embraced entire promotional campaigns designed to encourage eligible Americans to participate in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), or food stamps. A pamphlet currently posted at the USDA website encourages local SNAP offices to throw parties as one way to get potentially eligible seniors to enroll in the program. “Throw a Great Party. Host social events where people mix and mingle,” Biden: Economy a...

WASHINGTON, June 12, 2012 – The U.S. Department of Agriculture today announced a proposed rule to streamline and shorten categories of environmental review for certain restoration projects on National Forests. The proposed rule will allow the Forest Service to more efficiently implement projects related to improving water flow and the restoration of land and habitat. "We are gaining efficiencies that allow us to move more rapidly through the environmental review process while reducing the cost to the taxpayers of unnecessary documentation," said Harris Sherman, Under Secretary for Natural Resources and Environment. "These projects are really a win-win for the environment...

Although former House Speaker and presidential candidate Newt Gingrich was smeared as “racist” by many Democrats and members of the main stream media for declaring Barack Obama “the food stamp president,” it turns out that, according to the USDA, being a “food stamp president” is really hip. In fact, the nation’s agricultural agency says, in a recent video ad,

Under the proposed regulations, breeders or others who sell a puppy sight unseen, by any means including online, by mail or by telephone, would now be regulated in accordance with USDA standards, if you own more than four "breeding females" of any of the listed species, including dogs and cats. The effect of these proposed regulations would be to take away the public’s opportunity to obtain puppies from those breeders, who in many cases have dedicated their lives to breeding for health, breed type and temperament. As the leader and expert in breeding and maintaining dogs for more than a...

Dog breeders who skirt animal welfare laws by selling puppies over the Internet would face tighter scrutiny under a rule change proposed Thursday by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The change would subject dog owners who breed more than four females and sell the puppies electronically, by mail or over the phone to the same oversight faced by wholesale dealers as part of the Animal Welfare Act. That law, written in 1966, set standards of care for animals bred for commercial sale and research. Retail sales were exempt from inspections under the assumption that anyone who visited the store could...

The day began with a drive across the desert, checking the snares he had placed in the sagebrush to catch coyotes. Gary Strader, an employee of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, stepped out of his truck near a ravine in Nevada and found something he hadn't intended to kill. There, strangled in a neck snare, was one of the most majestic birds in America, a federally protected golden eagle. "I called my supervisor and said, 'I just caught a golden eagle and it's dead,' " said Strader. "He said, 'Did anybody see it?' I said, 'Geez, I don't think so.'...

Yes, there is a right way to blow up an animal carcass This, according to the US Forest Service document entitled "Obliterating Animal Carcasses with Explosives," is the right way. See those rectangles? Those represent sticks of dynamite. Their placement demonstrates how they should be positioned in order to achieve what the document calls "total obliteration." Pro-tip: The diagram up top illustrates how to explode a carcass when it needs to be eliminated quickly and absolutely. Under less urgent circumstances, the explosive placement illustrated below (corresponding to "partial obliteration") should suffice. Pro-tip #2: In some cases, it is probably best...

We were told our food was unfit for consumption and demanded that we call off the event... Quail Farm The evening was everything I had dreamed and hoped it would be. The weather was perfect, the farm was filled with friends and guests roaming around talking about organic, sustainable farming practices. Our guests were excited to spend an evening together. The food was prepared exquisitely. The long dinner table, under the direction of dear friends, was absolutely stunningly beautiful. The music was superb. The stars were bright and life was really good. And then, …for a few moments, it felt...

Dem presses USDA to ban 'pink slime' in school lunchesBy Mike Lillis - 03/14/12 06:00 PM ET A Maine Democrat is pressing the Obama administration to ban "pink slime" in school cafeterias. Rep. Chellie Pingree said the product – a blend of beef scraps treated with ammonia and used as a ground-beef filler – is "gross" and unfit for consumption by schoolchildren. In a letter to Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, Pingree is urging the agency to abandon its plan to continue buying hamburgers and other meats containing the product—historically used in animal feeds—for the nation's schools. "It is wrong to...