Innovation initiative for USDA announced by Secretary Perdue

The Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced the Agriculture Innovation Agenda that focuses on “The Innovation Imperative: Shaping the Future of Agriculture.” The USDA will stimulate innovation so that American agriculture can achieve the goal of increasing production by 40% while cutting the environmental footprint of U.S. agriculture in half by 2050. The first component of the Ag Innovation is to develop a strategy that aligns and synchronizes public and private sector research. The second component is to align the work of customer-facing agencies and integrate innovative technologies and practices into USDA programs. The third component is to conduct a review of USDA productivity and conservation data. Some of the benchmarks include Food loss and waste: reduce food loss and waste by 50 percent in the United States by the year 2030. Carbon Sequestration and Greenhouse Gas:  achieve a net reduction of the agricultural sector’s current carbon footprint by 2050 without regulatory overreach. Water Quality: Reduce nutrient loss by 30% nationally by 2050. Renewable Energy: increase biofuel production efficiency and competitiveness to achieve market-driven blend rates of 15% of transportation fuels in 2030 and 30% of transportation fuels by 2050. @ https://www.usda.gov/media/press-releases/2020/02/20/secretary-perdue-announces-new-innovation-initiative-usda