In North America, it is primarily grown not for food, but as a fallow crop, with the roots left unharvested to prevent soil compaction; the leaves (if harvested) are used as animal fodder. The official general name used by the United States Department of Agriculture is oilseed radish, but this is only used in non-culinary contexts. Other English terms employed when daikon is being used as animal feed or as a soil ripper are "forage radish", "fodder radish", and "tillage radish".