USDA, Chamber of Commerce Foundation promote ag jobs for veterans

The partnership between the USDA and Hiring Our Heroes is a program for veterans transitioning back to civilian life.
The partnership between the USDA and Hiring Our Heroes is a program for veterans transitioning back to civilian life. | File photo

U.S. military veterans and their spouses will now have a new opportunity for jobs, thanks to a collaboration between the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation. The goal of the collaboration is to introduce veterans and their spouses to agricultural jobs.

USDA Farm and Foreign Agricultural Services Deputy Under Secretary Lanon Baccam and Eric Eversole, vice president at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce signed the agreement to start the partnership. 

Eversole, a commander in the Navy Reserve, also serves as the foundation's president of Hiring Our Heroes. Baccam, a U.S. Army and Iowa National Guard veteran who served in Afghanistan, is the USDA's Military Veterans Liaison.

The partnership between the USDA and Hiring Our Heroes, a program for veterans transitioning back to civilian life, will provide training and opportunities for work in the agricultural field.

"Today's agreement opens the door for thousands of service members who participate in Hiring Our Heroes events around the world to benefit from USDA's vast array of tools and resources," Baccam said. "This new partnership strengthens USDA's ongoing efforts to help veterans pursue rewarding careers in farming, ranching, or in the fast-growing agriculture and food sectors."

This agreement comes after the USDA’s Farm Service Agency and the Department of Defense pledged to reach more of the nearly 200,000 military veterans transitioning back to civilian life.