USDA secretary outlines rapid relief plan, avian‑flu response and labor, trade priorities at Ag Outlook Forum

The Secretary of Agriculture, speaking remotely at the Ag Outlook Forum, outlined priorities in her first weeks on the job and said the department is moving quickly to distribute $30,000,000,000 in disaster and emergency relief, implement a five‑prong response to avian influenza and press to keep agriculture voices at the center of trade and tariff decisions.

The remarks, delivered 14 days after the secretary's confirmation, emphasized the scale of the challenges facing U.S. agriculture. "The state of our agriculture economy is dire, perhaps 1 of the worst in the last 100 years," the Secretary of Agriculture said, citing a projected trade deficit of "45 and a half billion dollars" and a recent decline in the number of farms. She added that "the cost of production is up by nearly 30% in the past year alone" and that the average age of U.S. farmers is 58.

Why it matters: The secretary framed the priorities as immediate and interlocking — rapid federal relief payments for producers affected by disasters; an urgent public‑health response to avian influenza that affects poultry producers and egg supplies; and labor and trade…