On April 23 the U.S. Department of Agriculture outlined a reorganization that will move a significant portion of its Washington-region workforce into regional hubs and other field locations, part of an effort the agency says will position staff closer to farmers.
The USDA said it is shifting most of its Washington-area personnel - about 2,600 people - into five regional hubs. The agency noted that the majority of its employees already live outside the Washington area, and framed the relocation as a step to align research and operational teams more closely with agricultural communities.
As part of the plan, some Washington-based staff from the Economic Research Service and the National Institute of Food and Agriculture will be transferred to Kansas City offices. Those two agencies previously were moved from Washington to Kansas City during the prior administration. The USDA also said some employees from the National Agricultural Statistics Service will relocate under the reorganization.
Relocating research programs and decommissioning Beltsville
The agency announced it will begin decommissioning the Beltsville Agricultural Research Center (BARC) in Beltsville, Maryland, and will relocate research programs housed at the flagship site. The move away from the center is a central element of the USDA's stated aim to place research institutions "outside of the beltway and closer to the land grant universities with talent pipelines who will lead the research and solve the problems facing the future of American agriculture," according to Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins.
BARC staff have raised concerns about unsafe working conditions at the site. Employees at the center also joined lawmakers and farm groups in criticizing the USDA's plan to close and relocate the facility, arguing that the relocation process would interrupt ongoing research.
Food safety staffing changes
The USDA said it will transfer roughly 200 employees from the Food Safety and Inspection Service to a new National Food Safety Center in Urbandale, Iowa. The agency described the move as part of its broader reorganization to concentrate expertise and operational capacity in locations outside the Washington region.
The agency frames the changes as a realignment intended to bring research and food-safety work closer to agricultural talent and stakeholders, while some affected workers and external critics warn the transition could disrupt research continuity and raise concerns about workplace safety at sites being closed.