Nevertheless, throwing money in the garbage is what many of us do regularly when it comes to food.  In 2008 the amount of uneaten food in homes and restaurants was valued at roughly $390 per U.S. consumer – more than an average month’s worth of food expenditures and almost three times the average monthly Supplemental Nutrition Program (SNAP) benefit. By reducing our food waste, we could put some of this money back in our pockets.

By reducing their food waste, manufacturers, restaurants and food stores can improve their bottom line.  By donating excess food, they can also help put food on the table for families in need. Across the county, businesses are doing just that.  Feeding America, a leading domestic hunger-relief charity, estimates that food donations supplied 2.7 billion meals to its clientele in 2010.  “Rock and Wrap It Up!”, an award-winning national hunger relief program, provides 100,000 meals every week from the leftovers from schools, hotels, sporting events, rock concerts, political gatherings, film shoots and television tapings.

On June 4^th, USDA and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will launch the U.S. Food Waste Challenge and call on others to join the effort to divert excess wholesome food to help families in need.

Check back next week for more ideas about what you can do, or learn more at www.usda.gov/oce/foodwaste/

The new Federal Open Data Policy asks agencies to use machine-readable formats when they build and disseminate information. At ERS, we are already traveling down that track…for Charts of Note and more. Our goal is to improve the reach, accessibility, and utility of important research findings.

This winter, we rolled out an initial set of APIs (application programming interfaces)—offering web developers and researchers machine-readable access to our agency’s web content, publications, and charts.  API access to ERS data products will start later this year.

And now, our new Charts of Note widget is available.  It’s a good example of an API-driven product.  This widget offers easy-to-use code snippets that bloggers or website developers can grab to embed specific daily charts, or to automatically display the most recently published chart on their pages.

A May 3 blog post on Slate praising ERS charts and research—published before the Charts of Note widget was released—demonstrates the appetite for this type of offering.

Contributing to USDA’s Digital Strategy, ERS will continue to improve its API offerings, building upon recommendations from a recent usability review at GSA’s Digital Innovation Center.

ERS has a wealth of information on agriculture, rural, and nutrition topics. All of our public data are available free, online. We provide data in various forms and formats to suit customer needs, as well as tools for exploring the data—ranging from chart collections to data files, queriable applications, and interactive mapping.  Check us out.

The USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) reminds all cooks to follow four simple tips—clean, separate, cook and chill—for a safe cookout. Additional safe food handling and cooking tips are available at the Grill It Safe website.

Clean and Separate
Preparation begins long before your guests arrive. Wash your hands, cutting boards and utensils with warm soapy water before handling food. To prevent cross contamination, raw meat products should be separated from other food items.  Also, use different knives and cutting boards during preparation of these products.

Always keep meat products chilled until the grill is ready.  Thaw meat completely to ensure meat cooks evenly on the grill. If you choose to use a marinade, do not reuse the marinade liquids that have been in contact with the raw meat later on a cooked dish.

Cook
All foodborne bacteria are killed when foods are heated to the proper temperature.  FSIS reminds cooks to use a meat thermometer to ensure meat reaches the safe internal temperature.

• Hot dogs—165 °F or until steaming hot,
• Poultry—165 °F,
• Ground beef and other ground meat—160 °F,
• Whole cuts of pork, lamb, veal and beef—145 °F (followed by a three-minute rest time), and
• Fish—145 °F.

Some popular side dishes like cold cuts, prepared salads (such as chicken salad or egg salad), and soft cheeses purchased at a deli are not typically reheated. These foods pose a risk of contamination with L. monocytogenes, a bacterium that can grow at normal refrigerator temperatures. Most healthy people rarely contract listeriosis, but it can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in people in at-risk groups, including people with weakened immune systems, pregnant women, infants, and the elderly. If you or your guests fall into any of the at-risk categories, these food products should be avoided or reheated until hot and steamy (165 °F) to ensure food safety.

Chill
After the table is set and the feasting begins, do not let your guard down. Bacteria grow most rapidly between 40 °F and 140 °F. To limit bacterial growth, keep hot food on the grill and place cold food in a cooler or ice bath. Never let perishable food sit out for more than two hours. If the outdoor temperature exceeds 90 °F, food should not sit out more than one hour. Refrigerate or freeze leftovers promptly and discard any food that has been sitting out too long.

By following these simple tips, you have piece of mind that you are serving your family and friends healthful and safe foods.

What is your best weapon in your food safety arsenal? Why the meat thermometer of course. Remember to cook meat products to the proper internal temperature to prevent foodborne illness at your barbeque or Memorial Day cookout.

The Amber Waves mobile app on an iPad with its cover displaying Volume 11, Issue 1, February 2013, "The Economics of Food, Farming, Natural Resources, and Rural America".

As part of USDA’s 12-month Digital Government Strategy deliverables we are sharing several new mobile and open data projects that help us deliver 21^st century service to you, our customers and stakeholders. These new tools and open data efforts will enable USDA customers, to more easily access critical programs and services anywhere, any time and on any device, in addition to stimulating further innovations:

Open Data Application Programming Interfaces (APIs):

Economic Research Service Web Content API – This API provides programmatic access to the primary content areas of the ERS public website, including Topics, Publications, and Charts of Note.

Farmers Market Directory API – This web API provides information about U.S. farmers market locations, directions, operating times, product offerings, and accepted forms of payment, including SNAP and WIC electronic benefits. The directory is one of the USDA’s most popular consumer search engines and includes information about more than 7,800 farmers market listings available for all 50 states.

USDA has additional APIs accessible through the USDA Developer Hub and set up a GitHub repository Issue Tracker to enable feedback, questions and recommendations for new API activities.

Mobile Optimized Services and Systems:

Amber Waves Magazine – While Amber Waves began as a print-and-internet product 10 years ago, it moved to web-only publication by 2012. In March, ERS launched a mobile application that readers can download free on iPads and other tablets.

Meat and Poultry Inspection Directory Android App – Customers can easily look up establishments that produce meat, poultry, and/or egg products as regulated by USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS). The MPI app provides enhanced functionality, allowing users to ‘look up’ or search establishments by location or zip code, type of inspection, establishment name or number and type of establishment. The app is currently available for Android devices, and we plan to release an iOS version later this year.

USDA Service Center Locator –This mobile-optimized web application delivers accurate and real-time office information for USDA Service Centers and their partnering agencies. The tool provides USDA Customers with the location of offices serving their area including contact information, street maps, and driving directions.

USDA.gov website is now optimized for mobile so users can access key topic data, news releases and other web content from any device. We are also working to optimize the USDA Blog for mobile, so stay tuned!

Learn more about the apps and open data projects from their creators:

Beyond apps and APIs, we have been working to establish a Digital Strategy governance policy that integrates the efforts of the Office of the Chief Information Officer, Office of Communications, as well as agency web, program and public affairs divisions. USDA’s collaborative approach will improve our customer service and delivery of digital programs, services and systems.

We’re working together to ensure all new digital services and systems are appropriately optimized for mobile and that our information is accessible in open, machine-readable formats. This work is important as we strive to make our programs and services accessible and responsive to customers with diverse needs.

Today’s milestone is only the beginning of our coordinated effort to transform the services and systems critical to rural America, consumers, and the wide variety of food and agriculture communities to meet 21^st century expectations. Keep an eye on our Digital Strategy page and the blog for new innovations and opportunities for engagement.

Windy City Harvest Graduate Aaron Serrano shows NIFA National Program Leader Siva Sureshwaran seedlings in the Daley City College greenhouse. (Photo: Alexandra Wilson)

Aaron Serrano was 15 years-old when he was charged with a felony and sentenced as an adult to two years in a Chicago-area prison. Today, at age 18, he has a full-time job at FarmedHere, an aquaponics agricultural producer in Chicago, where his boss calls him “a treasure.”

Serrano’s transformation from a troubled teenager into a well-trained agricultural professional wouldn’t have been possible without the opportunities given to him by the Chicago Botanic Garden’s Windy City Harvest, which runs a Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program (BFRDP) project funded by the USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA).

Windy City Harvest (WCH), a community education program within the Chicago Botanic Garden, is using BFRDP funds to run three major operations: a nine-month certificate program in sustainable horticulture and urban agriculture (in partnership with the Richard J. Daley City College), the Green Youth Farm student internship program, and a production and training garden at the Cook County Sheriff’s Vocational Rehab Impact Center (VRIC).

Serrano found his way into agriculture while at VRIC, and upon leaving, enrolled in the Windy City Harvest certificate program. After proving to be a skilled and dedicated worker, Serrano was selected to work as the aquaponics intern, overseeing a system with approximately 350 tilapia fish. Even before graduating, Serrano had employers interested in his skills and abilities.

Chicago’s North Lawndale neighborhood, the area where WCH operates, suffers high rates of unemployment, poverty, and childhood obesity. In this “food desert,” Windy City Harvest provides not only the education and experience needed to get beginning urban farmers started, but also high-value, nutritious produce that is available at affordable prices to local residents.

Patsy Benveniste, Vice President of Community Education Programs at the Chicago Botanic Garden, speaks with NIFA National Program Leader Siva Sureshwaran who leads the Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program (Photo: Alexandra Wilson)

After two cycles, the WCH certificate program has graduated 29 students. While some, like Serrano, work for local-food businesses, many start farm businesses of their own. All three WCH operations teach production and management strategies that encourage land stewardship through growing food safely and sustainably, offer business management and decision support strategies, and engage beginning farmers in direct and wholesale marketing strategies.

BFRDP, funded in the 2008 Farm Bill, has awarded $75 million in grants to 148 projects in 48 states. BFRDP funds education, Extension, outreach, and technical assistance initiatives to help farmers and ranchers with less than 10 years of experience.  To enhance impacts, BFRDP identifies and disseminates best practices in beginning farmer and rancher education. Project outcomes are monitored through annual outcomes reports, peer reviewed presentations at project director meetings, through webinars, and interactions with USDA staff.   One of the major outcomes of 2011 was the 38,000 beginning farmers and ranchers who attended BFRDP funded training.

Through federal funding and leadership for research, education, and Extension programs, NIFA focuses on investing in science and solving critical issues impacting people’s daily lives and the nation’s future.

Windy City Harvest Graduate Aaron Serrano explains the aquaponics system to BFRDP program staff visiting the grantee operation sites in Chicago. (Photo: Alexandra Wilson)

Recently, Acting USDA Rural Utilities Administrator John Padalino visited North Dakota to host a meeting, which focused on creating partnerships that benefit the future of rural America. Key players in this conversation were the water, electric, and telecom providers. Padalino noted that without basic infrastructure, we would have no support for our rural economies, which are critical to the success of our nation.  All of us depend on rural America for our food, water, and energy.

As the importance of the rural economy remains high, the population is on a decline. Padalino urged meeting participants to be proactive and share stories of the important work they do.

Utility providers in North Dakota not only offer reliable and modernized services, but have been re-investing in the rural communities they serve. Through the Rural Economic Development program, electric cooperatives in North Dakota have helped build a child care center, expand a farm equipment dealership, and construct an emergency services center. Through the Distance Learning and Telemedicine program, telecom companies have provided schools with greater educational opportunities and hospitals a higher quality care. All of these projects help to attract and retain a rural workforce.

While Congress works to pass a Farm Bill, Padalino said it is critical to be engaged in the process as it supports the efforts of folks in rural America. Many people nationwide do not understand the importance of this legislation, but we can all help change that!

Earlier today, USDA announced Rural Economic Development Loan and Grant awards to support jobs in 11 states. For more information click here. To learn more about USDA’s Rural Development programs, click here.

While in North Dakota, Administrator Padalino also went on a tour of the state’s energy facilities through Basin Electric Cooperative which included visits to a wind farm, gasification plant and coal mine. He is pictured here overlooking the Freedom Mine near Beulah, North Dakota.

A young boy smiles over a bowl of freshly washed apricots. Select apricots that are plump with golden orange color, but avoid ones that are pale yellow, greenish-yellow, shriveled or bruised.

As the cold, drab winter gives way to warmer temperatures and the crisp colors of spring, our longing for stews and other comfort foods ebbs, making way for some warm-weather favorites.  Picnics, hiking and other outdoor activities heighten the appeal of lighter, fresh salad greens, fruits, and vegetables.  From strawberries to broccoli, apricots to artichokes—we offer a few tips to help you pick the best of the season’s offerings.

Artichokes
The artichoke takes a bit of time to peel and prepare, but it is a versatile veggie whose leaves can be eaten individually, sautéed with other vegetables, or added to a spicy rice dish. Artichokes should have deep green, tightly-packed leaves closed at the top. They should be firm and with some weight.

Apricots
Apricots can simply be washed and eaten, or try slicing them up and adding them to a green salad. It makes no difference how they are eaten because this sometimes underrated fruit has stood the test of time, is always delicious, and has a renewed fan base. Select apricots that are plump with a golden orange color, but avoid ones that are pale yellow, greenish-yellow, shriveled or bruised. Soft apricots tend to be the most flavorful.  Serve them at room temperature to experience their full flavor.

Broccoli
Broccoli is a fantastic food that is a staple in households across America and a party tray essential. When selecting broccoli, look for medium green to dark purple head with brightly colored stalks. The head should be compact and firm when squeezed slightly, with no visible flowering. Remember to wash broccoli with cold water just prior to use.

Cherries
Raw or cooked, cherries are an easy crowd-pleaser.  For fresh cherries, look for firm, plump, glossy cherries with bright green stems and no blemishes. Keeping the stems intact maintains freshness and offers a built-in handle.

Strawberries
Strawberries are a favored staple and one of the most versatile fruits. Eat them fresh, dip them in chocolate, or slice them for a cake or ice cream topper. They also make a sweet surprise in a fresh spinach salad. Strawberries should be bright red with a natural shine and fresh green cap. Berries should be plump, not mushy, with no sign of mold. Wash them in cold water with the cap on to keep the juice inside the berry.

At USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS), we offer grading and verification services for a wide variety of fruits and vegetables.  Visit our website to learn more about grading standards, Good Agricultural Handling Practices (GAP) and the many other ways we help ensure the quality of America’s food.

But most of all pick your favorite fruits and veggies and enjoy all the warmer weather has to offer!

Many of us struggle to store or use up the last of the leftovers or think of something edible to do with those shriveled vegetables at the bottom of the chiller drawer.  In fact, in 2010, 133 billion pounds of food in U.S. retail food stores, restaurants, and homes never made it into people’s stomachs. An estimated 30 to 40 percent of the food supply in the U.S. is wasted, in that it never reaches the intended consumers.  Unfortunately, the decision to purchase and then discard food has some serious ramifications for the environment and for food security.

Together, we can do something about this.  On June 4th – the day before World Environment Day – USDA and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will launch the U.S. Food Waste Challenge and call on organizations spanning the food supply chain to join the fight against food waste.  Together we can help reduce the amount of food that is sent to our landfills and increase the amounts that are recovered to help families in need.

Want to learn more?  Over the next several weeks, USDA will share observations about the social, economic, and environmental consequences of food waste in our country.  Check back for more blogs to learn what you can do.  You can also explore at www.usda.gov/oce/foodwaste/

Anyone with questions about the safety of their food as a result of weather damage and power outages is encouraged to call the USDA Meat and Poultry Hotline (888-MPHotline), available in English and Spanish from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. CDT.

Ask Karen, FSIS’ virtual food safety representative who has the answers to nearly 1,500 food safety questions, is available 24/7 from your smartphone at m.AskKaren.gov, also in English and Spanish. Ask Karen can be downloaded for free for iOS and Android devices.

The publication “A Consumer’s Guide to Food Safety: Severe Storms and Hurricanes” is an excellent reference to help determine if food is safe and how to keep food safe to minimize the risk of foodborne illness.

Throughout the week, FSIS will be reaching out through the press to those affected by the storm to help spread information on how to avoid foodborne illness as a result of power loss and compromised food storage.

For more information on available assistance, click here.  For more food safety information, click here.

Agricultural producers are reminded that Federal crop insurance covers tornado damage, as well as other natural causes of loss.  Please remember to report your loss to your insurance agent or company within 72 hours and in writing within 15 days. Your insurance company will send out a loss adjuster as soon as they are safely able to do so and will document your insurance claim. Please remember that you cannot destroy your crop or plant a new crop until the loss adjuster or your insurance company has informed you that you can do so.

Three disaster programs are currently available to farmers and ranchers (and private forest land owners) through the Farm Service Agency.  They are: Emergency Designation (low-interest) loans, the Emergency Conservation Program (ECP), and the Emergency Forest Restoration Program (EFRP).

Up to two-thirds of the counties in the United States have been designated as disaster areas in each of the past several years. Producers may apply for low-interest emergency (EM) loans in counties named as primary or contiguous under a disaster designation. For more information, contact your nearest USDA service center or any USDA state office.

USDA has reached out to Oklahoma state partners to offer food assistance to those in need in areas affected by the tornadoes.  USDA, through the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) will continue to work closely with the state to provide support and technical assistance as needed.

Many residents of the affected area are in need of shelter.  USDA Rural Development staff is identifying USDA-financed and currently available multi-family (apartment) units and will provide the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) with information needed to assist those in need of emergency housing. For emergency assistance with immediate housing needs contact FEMA.

Once the emergency is over, those wishing to buy or repair a home in an eligible rural area may qualify for a loan or loan guarantee through USDA.  Please contact your local USDA Service Center for additional information.

USDA also offers assistance to water system operators.  For more information, contact your local USDA service center or state office.

For more information on available assistance, click here.  For more information about the government response to this disaster click here.