U.S. Secretary of Agriculture

Secretary of Agriculture of the United States of America
Seal of the Department of Agriculture
Flag of the Secretary of Agriculture
Incumbent Michael Young since January 20, 2017 Acting
United States Department of Agriculture
Style	Mr. Secretary
Member of	Cabinet
Reports to	The President
Seat	Washington, D.C., U.S.
Appointer	The President with Senate advice and consent
Term length	No fixed term
Constituting instrument	7 U.S.C. § 2202
Formation	February 15, 1889
First holder	Norman Jay Coleman
Succession	Ninth
Deputy	Deputy Secretary of Agriculture
Salary	Executive Schedule, level 1
Website	www.usda.gov

The United States Secretary of Agriculture is the head of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The current Acting Secretary is Michael Young, who has held the office since the inauguration of Donald Trump on January 20, 2017. The position carries similar responsibilities to those of agriculture ministers in other governments.

The department includes several organizations. The 297,000 mi² (770,000 km²) of national forests and grasslands are managed by the United States Forest Service. The safety of food produced that are produced in the United States and sold here is ensured by the United States Food Safety and Inspection Service. The Food Stamp Program works with the states to provide food to low-income people. Advice for farmers and gardeners is provided by the United States Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service.

The line of succession for the Secretary of Agriculture is as follows:

In 2015, Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack expressed the desire to resign to President Obama. The Washington Post reports that he said "There are days when I have literally nothing to do," he recalled thinking as he weighed his decision to quit." President Obama asked him to stay and asked him to look into the problem of opioid addiction.

The following is a list of Secretaries of Agriculture, since the creation of the office in 1889.

  Democratic (13)   Republican (18)

As of February 2017, there are nine living former Secretaries of Agriculture, the oldest being Robert Bergland (served 1977-1981, born 1928). The most recent Secretary of Agriculture to die was Clifford M. Hardin (served 1969–1971, born 1915), on April 4, 2010. The most recently serving Secretary to die was Edward Rell Madigan (1991-1993, born 1936) on December 7, 1994.