USDA is accepting written comments until September 30 on its plan to relocate 2,600 Washington, D.C.-based employees to five regional offices across the country. This change will likely mean significant turnover and comes after more than 15,000 staff resignations over the last several months, including one-third of National Organic Program (NOP) staff. The plan also proposes to close the Beltsville Agricultural Research Center.
According to the journal Science, the Beltsville center is “one of the largest in-house research facilities at USDA, with roughly 500 employees including scientists. Some 300 buildings are scattered over 2,600 hectares. Since the site was established more than a century ago, researchers there have developed popular products such as Roma tomatoes, multi-disease-resistant strawberries, and the Beltsville Small White turkey, an influential breed.”
To share concerns with the possible closure of the Beltsville Agricultural Research Center and the relocation plan more broadly, email reorganization@usda.gov by September 30