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Overview
Good nutrition is important for a long and healthy life. American's today produce and have access to the largest variety
of food products in the world. Yet, American's are among the most obese people in the world and headlines of food contamination
appear in U.S. newspapers frequently. These trends are not due to a lack of information thanks to the efforts of the U.S.
Department of Agriculture (USDA).
Key Resources
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Nutrition.gov
The National Agricultural Library (NAL) is part of the USDA's Agricultural Research Service (ARS) and houses a large collection
of agricultural information. Nutrition.gov is a service of the NAL that provides easy access to information about food and
nutrition including nutrients, meal planning, food labeling and packaging, and obesity prevention. Visit this site to access MyPiramid.gov to help assess and plan your food choices. Check out the Dietary Guidelines for Americans to reduce the risk of major diseases through healthy habits. Find out how the ARS investigates ways to make foods more nutritious,
learn the difference between trans fats, saturated fats and Omega-3 fats, or obtain a nutrition resource list for vegetarians.
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Food Safety & InspectionThe Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is an agency within the USDA that is charged with ensuring that the United State's
food supply is safe, healthy, and correctly labelled and packaged. Their duties include researching food pathogens and methods
of reduction; creating policies, regulations, directives and notices; inspecting food sources and food processing plants;
enforcing compliance; educating the public on food safety; and providing food safety support to industries and agencies during
natural disasters or other emergencies. The FSIS portal of the USDA web site provides links to all of the above information
as well as to news reports on current food-related information.
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