What USDA Will Do During Government Shutdown
Despite the government shutdown, certain aspects of the USDA will continue to operate. On Friday, USDA issued a release in which U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue outlined the services that will continue to be available, including the following:
- Ensuring meat, poultry and egg products are safe
- Inspect before and after bird and animal slaughter for food intended for humans
- Apply foreign government inspection requirements and procedures
- Conduct emergency operations related to voluntary meat and poultry products
- Conduct epidemiological investigations related to foodborne health hazards and disease outbreaks, and provide pathological, microbiological, and chemical examination of USDA regulated products for disease, infection, contamination and adulteration
- Prevent movement of adulterated product
A full outline of the government shutdown plan is available on the USDA website.