Ann Veneman, American lawyer and politician, 27th United States Secretary of Agriculture

Ann Margaret Veneman is an American attorney who served as the fifth executive director of UNICEF from 2005 to 2010. She previously served as the 27th United States secretary of agriculture from 2001 to 2005. Veneman served for the first term of President George W. Bush, and she left to take the UNICEF position. Appointed by the U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan on January 18, 2005, she took over the post on May 1, 2005, serving until 2010. Previously, she also served as secretary of the California Department of Food and Agriculture, serving from 1995 to 1999, as well as United States deputy secretary of agriculture, serving from 1991 to 1993. Veneman was the first woman to serve as Secretary of Agriculture and the second woman to lead UNICEF, following her predecessor, Carol Bellamy.

The United States secretary of agriculture is the head of the United States Department of Agriculture. The position carries similar responsibilities to those of agriculture ministers in other governments