WASHINGTON – Today at USDA Headquarters, Navajo Nation President Buu Nygren met with Deputy Secretary Stephen Vaden, their first meeting since Vaden’s July confirmation.
The meeting with Deputy Secretary Vaden provided a platform for President Nygren to outline the unique needs and opportunities for the Navajo Nation to lead in agriculture, with its natural resources as the largest tribal nation in the United States.
Both leaders described the meeting as positive and forward-looking, with conversation centered on how to align Navajo food sovereignty with Make America Healthy Again (MAHA). Some solutions include expanding Navajo-grown, healthy foods while strengthening supply chains.
“The Navajo Nation has a strong opportunity to produce more of the food America needs,” President Nygren said. “With so many Native people calling Navajo home, we can lead by building careers in farming and ranching right here, strengthening families, growing our economy, and advancing true food sovereignty. I invited Deputy Secretary Vaden to join us at one of our fairs to meet producers, see our operations firsthand, and help accelerate this work.”
President Nygren said the capacity of Navajo Agricultural Products Industry (NAPI) and the recent USDA-supported distributions of traditional staples as being a successful partnership. He also raised how the persistent Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations (FDPIR) is challenge with the Navajo Nation’s unique geography. The USDA has since requested more detailed documentation so fixes can be targeted.
President Nygren also emphasized the importance of having expanded, place-based technical assistance under the USDA’s reorganization efforts. In previous discussions, President Nygren and the Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS Chief Aubrey Bettencourt) pledged their support for an NRCS office in the Navajo Nation. President Nygren noted the Navajo Nation would benefit from additional USDA Tribal liaisons and planning support for conservation plans.
Deputy Secretary Vaden encouraged the Navajo Nation to participate in upcoming tribal consultations on USDA’s restructuring.
President Nygren said that the incoming new USDA hub in Fort Collins, Colo., will be a strategic hub to better serve the Four Corners region. Additionally, that a Four Corners-oriented office would benefit Navajo farmers and ranchers as well as neighboring Tribal and rural communities.
Lastly, the parties also discussed deepening collaboration with the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, including partnerships with the Nation’s 1994 land-grant institutions (Diné College and Navajo Technical University) to expand research, workforce training, and technical support. The USDA’s Office of Tribal Relations agreed to help the Navajo Nation identify areas of research to fund.