Food Safety:
USDA's Data Program Not Supporting Critical Pesticide Decisions
T-IMTEC-92-9: Published: Mar 11, 1992. Publicly Released: Mar 11, 1992.
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GAO discussed the Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Pesticide Data Program, focusing on whether: (1) the program is producing the data needed to make improved pesticide regulatory decisions; and (2) USDA has a data management strategy to produce data resulting from the program. GAO noted that: (1) USDA established the program to collect pesticide usage and residue data that can be used to improve government decisions on pesticide safety within USDA, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA); (2) although USDA has made progress in collecting useful pesticide usage data, it lacks adequate residue collection procedures and reliable data on the quantity and types of pesticides applied on food crops; (3) USDA lacks an agencywide information resources management strategy critical to successfully collecting, processing, and disseminating pesticide data across the federal government; (4) the USDA pesticide usage surveys are proceeding on schedule, and EPA and FDA are generally satisfied with the published data; (5) problems that pose a significant risk to Pesticide Data Program success include a lack of specific written USDA agreements with EPA and FDA on program direction, a lack of a statistically defensible sampling plan capable of producing data equality based on the program's intended objectives, and USDA failure to determine adequate computer resources to process and disseminate the pesticide data; and (6) although GAO has made several recommendations to USDA to help establish a better program foundation, USDA does not agree with the recommendations, and has made little progress in implementing them.
Jul 17, 2018
Summer Meals:
Improvements Needed to Address Participation Estimates and Program ChallengesGAO-18-611T: Published: Jul 17, 2018. Publicly Released: Jul 17, 2018.
Jul 2, 2018
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Summer Meals:
Actions Needed to Improve Participation Estimates and Address Program ChallengesGAO-18-369: Published: May 31, 2018. Publicly Released: Jul 2, 2018.
Jun 5, 2018
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Farm Programs:
Information on Payments [Reissued with Revisions Jun. 05, 2018]GAO-18-384R: Published: May 18, 2018. Publicly Released: May 18, 2018.
Apr 18, 2018
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Food Safety:
USDA Should Take Further Action to Reduce Pathogens in Meat and Poultry ProductsGAO-18-272: Published: Mar 19, 2018. Publicly Released: Apr 18, 2018.
Apr 16, 2018
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Food Safety:
Federal Efforts to Manage the Risk of Arsenic in RiceGAO-18-199: Published: Mar 16, 2018. Publicly Released: Apr 16, 2018.
Apr 10, 2018
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U.S. Department of Agriculture:
Additional Data Analysis Could Enhance Monitoring of U.S. Cattle MarketGAO-18-296: Published: Apr 10, 2018. Publicly Released: Apr 10, 2018.
Mar 5, 2018
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Food Safety and Nutrition:
FDA Can Build on Existing Efforts to Measure Progress and Implement Key ActivitiesGAO-18-174: Published: Jan 31, 2018. Publicly Released: Mar 5, 2018.
Nov 30, 2017
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WIC:
USDA's Review of Vegetables Available under the Program Followed Leading Research PracticesGAO-18-125R: Published: Nov 30, 2017. Publicly Released: Nov 30, 2017.
Nov 27, 2017
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Food Safety:
FDA Continues to Evaluate and Respond to Business Concerns about the Produce RuleGAO-18-85: Published: Nov 27, 2017. Publicly Released: Nov 27, 2017.
Nov 21, 2017
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Agricultural Promotion Programs:
USDA Could Build on Existing Efforts to Further Strengthen Its OversightGAO-18-54: Published: Nov 21, 2017. Publicly Released: Nov 21, 2017.
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