FDLP Resource Guides: U.S. Department of Agriculture: USDA Resources

Overview

The USDA publishes on a variety of topics, including on cultural events and scientific data. Whether on a USDA, U.S. Government Publishing Office (GPO), or an interagency website, the general public can access these publications for free.

USDA Publications

Featured USDA Publications

USDA publishes on a variety of works. Click on the side arrows to see the featured publications.

Economic Research Service's Amber Waves
Food and Nutrition Service's Factsheets
Forest Service's Technical Reports
National Institute of Food and Agriculture's Factsheets

Amber Waves (Economic Research Service)

Read some articles from the monthly publication, which explores varied topics, including the environment and food:

Factsheets (Food and Nutrition Service)

See technical assistance and guidance on general and product information.

Factsheets (National Institute of Food and Agriculture)

Find information related to the National Institute of Food and Agriculture.

Technical Reports (Forest Service)

Check out this publication on a range of forestry-related topics.

USDA Publications using GPO Resources

GPO has information and publications about the USDA. Featured examples include the Catalog of U.S. Government Publications (CGP), FDLP Academy, and GovInfo. Click on the tabs of this box to learn more about these resources.

The CGP is one GPO resource to find USDA publications. The following information is about one search strategy using the Superintendent of Documents (SuDoc) class numbers.

Go to the CGP
Click on the "Advanced" button in the main menu.
Select "SuDoc Class Number."
Type in the SuDoc class number (see table below for USDA examples)
Click "Go."
Search results appear in order of publication year (newest to oldest).
- Some search results lists will include class numbers in the SuDoc column other than the number searched. This happens if a catalog record contains both old and new SuDoc numbers. The CGP displays the original SuDoc number on the search results page, and the current number is only visible once a record is opened. GPO is investigating whether this can be changed.

USDA Department or Bureau	SuDoc Class Number
U.S. Department of Agriculture	A
Farm Service Agency	A 112.
Food Safety and Inspection Service	A 110.
Forest Service	A 13.
Natural Resources Conservation Service	A 57.

Freely available for the general public, the FDLP Academy offers webinars and webcasts for Federal Depository Libraries. Its mission is to "create and deliver enhanced educational opportunities to the FDLP community by fostering collaboration, by facilitating knowledge sharing, and through the application of new methods and use of multiple mediums" about U.S. Government resources. The following webinars contain USDA-related information that may be helpful for library professionals and the general public.

	Discovering the Specialized Information Centers of the National Agricultural Library Recorded on April 6, 2021 Length of Time: 54 minutes Speakers: Stephanie Ritchie, Patrice Armstrong, and Tanya Tanner (National Agricultural Library)
	Information to Support Research from the National Agricultural Library Recorded on January 14, 2025 Length of Time: 50 minutes Speakers: Jessica Ault and Stephanie Ritchie (National Agricultural Library)
	National Agricultural Library’s Animal Welfare Information Center (AWIC) and Animal Welfare in the Legislation Recorded on June 23, 2021 Length of Time: 56 minutes Speakers: Jessie Kull and Erika Edwards (National Agricultural Library)
	Taking the Department to the People: Editing Wikipedia to Help Ensure Equitable Access to USDA National Agricultural Library Resources and Collections Recorded on September 19, 2024 Length of Time: 59 minutes Speaker: Jamie Flood (National Agricultural Library)

GovInfo provides free access to official publications from all three branches of the Federal government. GovInfo has a collection of USDA Congressionally Mandated Reports, some of which are featured below.

	Agriculture Advanced Research and Development Authority: A Vision for Disruptive Science to Confront Audacious Challenges Date: March 2023 Quoted excerpt: "Success of U.S. agriculture has been undergirded by investments in research enabling agricultural practices to evolve to meet demands of a dynamic food industry. Between 1948 and 2019, total agricultural output in the United States grew by 175 percent stemming from a highly productive investment in publicly funded innovations in crop and livestock breeding, nutrient use, pest management, and farm and field management."
	Department of Agriculture 2022 Equitable Relief Report Date: April 2023 Quoted excerpt: "Section 1613 of the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (the 2002 Farm Bill) grants the Farm Service Agency (FSA) State Directors and the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) State Conservationists the authority to provide equitable relief to FSA participants in price, income support, production, or loss assistance programs and NRCS conservation programs."
	Food for Progress Report, Fiscal Year 2022 Date: October 2023 Quoted excerpt: "During FY 2022, activities conducted by active projects reached more than 444,000 direct participants. As a result of [Food for Progress Program] FFPr’s work, more than 317,000 individuals applied improved agricultural management practices or technologies to more than 681,000 hectares."
	FY 2022 SNAP Nutrition Incentive Project Activity Date: August 2023 Quoted excerpt: "Upon making the qualifying purchase, the incentive rebate is automatically deposited into the household’s SNAP EBT account to be used for any SNAPeligible item at any SNAP-authorized store."
	FY 2023 Second Quarter Congressional Home-to-Work Report Date: September 2023 Quoted excerpt: "Allowing USDA employees to use government vehicles for home-to-work transportation is an important component in the efficiency and effectiveness of USDA program delivery in the field especially in rural communities."
	Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program and Federal Crop Insurance Acreage Under Native Sod Restrictions, 2022 Date: March 2023 Quoted excerpt: "The U.S. Department of Agriculture is providing Congress with a report that describes the tilled native sod acreage subject to a reduction in benefits in the Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP) and the Federal crop insurance program in each applicable county and State for 2022."