NPR

Critics Say USDA Plan To Move Federal Agencies Could Hurt Research Vital For Farmers

A plan to move USDA research groups out of Washington D.C. has towns clamoring for high-paying jobs. But critics say it's part of an effort to gut objective research and cut jobs at the two agencies.

A couple of federal agencies you probably haven't heard of keep track of what farmers grow, what Americans eat and how the country's entire food system operates. And the Trump Administration wants them out Washington, D.C.

Last summer, Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue announced the Economic Research Service (ERS) and the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) would relocate somewhere that's closer to farmers and public universities doing agricultural research. But critics,

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