Protect the Data that Nourishes Us

Protect the Data that Nourishes Us highlights how federal data and tools influence our daily lives—in ways we often overlook. We trace the life cycle of an apple from seed to supermarket, spotlighting some of the federal datasets that go into critical stages like securing funding for farms, working around weather and climate, and marketing and selling apples. Understanding the significance of federal data in our daily lives is an important first step toward making the personal and policy decisions to protect this critical infrastructure.

• Data and Tools Mentioned in Story

  • USDA NASS Quick Stats Database Survey Data

  • USDA Census of Agriculture

  • USDA FSA Crop Acreage Data

  • USDA ERS Fruit and Tree Nuts Yearbook Tables

  • USDA NRCS Soil Survey Geographic Database and Web Soil Survey

  • USDA NRCS Soil Climate Analysis Network

  • USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map

  • USDA ARS Germplasm Resources Information Network

  • NOAA NWS Forecast Data

  • NOAA NCEI Climate Data Online

  • NOAA NCEI US Climate Normals

  • USDA Forest Service Climate Risk Viewer

  • USDA Climate Hubs

    • USDA Climate Hubs Tools

    • USDA Climate Hubs Data and Research

  • USDA AMS Pesticide Data Program Database

  • USDA NASS Agricultural Chemical Use Survey

  • USDA AMS Market News Reports

  • USDA NASS Cold Storage Data

  • USDA AMS Fruit and Vegetable Truck Rate Report

  • USDA AMS Grading and Standards Data

  • USDA ERS Fruit and Tree Nuts Historical Data (Last updated in 2013)

  • USDA ERS Food Availability (per capita) Data System

  • USDA Fruit and Tree Nuts Selected Weekly Fruit Movement and Price (discontinued in 2022)

  • USDA FAS Global Agricultural Trade System

• Other Resources

  • Agent Locator | Risk Management Agency

  • Apples | Agricultural Marketing Resource Center

  • Apple breeding at the University of Minnesota | Minnesota Hardy

  • Disappearing Data, Part II: Distorted Science and Deregulation | National Security Archive

  • EPA Announces Reduction in Force, Reorganization Efforts to Save Taxpayers Nearly Three-Quarters of a Billion Dollars | US EPA

  • Farmers depend on climate data. They’re suing the USDA for deleting it. - Investigate Midwest

  • Farmers Sued Over Deleted Climate Data. So the Government Will Put It Back. - The New York Times

  • How the shutdown is roiling climate programs at 6 agencies - E&E News by POLITICO

  • Northeast Organic Farming Association of New York, Natural Resources Defense Council, and Environmental Working Group Versus U.S. Department of Agriculture

  • POLITICO Pro | Article | USDA eyes more layoffs if government shuts down

  • Risk Management - Crop Insurance at a Glance | Economic Research Service

  • The World Loves Apple Farmers to the Core | USDA

  • Trump administration shuts down EPA's scientific research arm : NPR

  • Trump targets federal employees working on conservation and environmental protection | Grist

  • Trump’s Firing of BLS Commissioner is Part of Larger Erosion of Federal Data Infrastructure – ITEP

  • Trump’s USDA tried to erase climate data. This lawsuit forced it back online. | Grist

  • US Federal Agricultural Farm Subsidies: How Much Farmers Get By Year | USAFacts

  • U.S. Apple Industry Outlook 2022

  • U.S. Apples: Slicing Through the Data | Economic Research Service

• Credits

  Research, Writing and Production

  Isabella Pacenza
  
  
  Producing and Editing

  Michelle Cheripka
  
  
  Quality Assurance

  Brittany Janis
  
  
  Illustration

  Laura N-Tamara