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In 2021, 78 farmers in cities within Cortland County received a total of $1.5 million in 137 farm subsidies, a 65.9% decrease compared to 2020, when the total was $4.5 million in 316 farm subsidies.
Though farm subsidies support agriculture in the U.S., pumping $7 trillion into the economy, they are not without controversy.
The American Action Forum discovered that the most highly subsidized crops - corn, soy, wheat, and rice - are often consumed in highly processed ways, which leads to unhealthy eating habits and obesity, while the fruits and vegetables needed for a healthy diet are rarely subsidized.
"We are consuming more calories, fats, sodium, and sugars, and not enough beneficial nutrients and vitamins," Tara O'Neill Hayes wrote. "It is critical that both policymakers and the American public understand the influence that federal agricultural subsidies have on our food supply and diet and, in turn, our nutrition and health."
Farm subsidies have also been criticized for assisting the highest-earning agricultural businesses, not local farmers on their family farms who are barely getting by.
Kimberly Amadeo of The Balance said farmer subsidies "help high-income corporations, not poor rural farmers. Most of the money goes toward large agribusinesses."
The U.S. has provided farm subsidies since the Great Depression to assist farmers who weather price fluctuations and disasters, to help maintain consistent farming across the country.
| Farmer | Total Received in 2020 | Total Received in 2021 | % Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Preble Hill Farms, LLC | $1,040,535 | $342,971 | -67% |
| East River Dairy, LLC | $1,031,490 | $164,997 | -84% |
| Company-Vale Holsteins, LLC | $482,472 | $143,733 | -70.2% |
| Fouts Farm, LLC | $463,854 | $135,774 | -70.7% |
| Tracey Evanick | $227,900 | $120,508 | -47.1% |
| Haines Farm, LLC | $130,801 | $96,885 | -25.9% |
| Kevin A. Sharpe | $84,102 | $60,401 | -28.2% |
| Mockingbird Hill Farm | $52,162 | $48,307 | -7.4% |
| David W. Augur | $58,855 | $46,330 | -21.3% |
| T. V. Dairy, LLC | $0 | $44,973 | -- |
| Randy Closson | $50,918 | $37,611 | -26.1% |
| Hilltop Divine Dairy, LLC | $56,129 | $35,960 | -35.9% |
| Cobblestone Valley Enterprises, LLC | $0 | $34,382 | -- |
| Peter C. Ruschmann | $26,454 | $27,744 | 4.9% |
| Hugh D. Gendron | $15,524 | $15,553 | 0.2% |
| Kurtis Brown | $16,794 | $14,676 | -12.6% |
| Renae L. Brown | $16,692 | $14,676 | -12.1% |
| Diescher Farms | $46,598 | $14,217 | -69.5% |
| Hoel-Way Farm | $12,975 | $11,051 | -14.8% |
| Richard Edgar | $7,479 | $9,241 | 23.6% |
| Amanda a Barber | $3,933 | $7,923 | 101.4% |
| Donald E Barber | $3,933 | $7,891 | 100.6% |
| Steven Mudge | $34,351 | $7,361 | -78.6% |
| Van Patten Farms, LLC | $15,593 | $7,080 | -54.6% |
| Gerald Bell | $1,067 | $5,816 | 445.1% |
| James A. Boughton | $3,969 | $5,569 | 40.3% |
| HB Farms, LLC | $68,163 | $5,263 | -92.3% |
| Sunset-Young Farm | $88,795 | $4,962 | -94.4% |
| Jason R. Tuning | $9,258 | $4,887 | -47.2% |
| Alta Waltz | $28,643 | $4,205 | -85.3% |
| Joseph P. Simon | $16,735 | $3,620 | -78.4% |
| John Diescher | $6,160 | $3,274 | -46.9% |
| Benz Farm | $26,536 | $2,994 | -88.7% |
| Richard Barber | $2,810 | $2,810 | 0% |
| Thomas Wolf | $6,834 | $2,517 | -63.2% |
| Stanley Duncan | $2,477 | $2,477 | 0% |
| Cory Hatfield | $3,256 | $2,367 | -27.3% |
| Kelly S. Wright | $2,422 | $2,331 | -3.8% |
| Douglas Christofferson | $2,325 | $2,325 | 0% |
| Melissa Benner | $12,256 | $2,195 | -82.1% |
| Nicholas Benner | $12,256 | $2,195 | -82.1% |
| Michael Barylski | $2,022 | $2,022 | 0% |
| Stanley Pierce | $1,950 | $1,950 | 0% |
| Nancy Clark | $460 | $1,904 | 313.9% |
| Robert & Kyle Eaton Farms Partnership | $0 | $1,813 | -- |
| Robert Vandonsel | $490 | $1,650 | 236.7% |
| Arthur J Harmath III | $0 | $1,638 | -- |
| Jeffrey Jebbett | $1,904 | $1,602 | -15.9% |
| Nael Cam Farms | $6,149 | $1,586 | -74.2% |
| Betsy Hicks | $7,298 | $1,586 | -78.3% |
| Heritage Farms, LLC | $3,138 | $1,328 | -57.7% |
| Deborah Marcham | $1,315 | $1,315 | 0% |
| Donald A. Brown | $1,285 | $1,292 | 0.5% |
| Allen McKee | $1,266 | $1,266 | 0% |
| Fairholm Farms, Ltd. | $1,845 | $1,263 | -31.5% |
| Jonathan A. McKee | $1,228 | $1,228 | 0% |
| Michael McKee | $1,228 | $1,228 | 0% |
| Kenneth Carrier | $1,155 | $1,155 | 0% |
| Frank Mcsloy | $1,697 | $1,151 | -32.2% |
| Steven D. Zogg | $5,817 | $1,099 | -81.1% |
| Lynn Darling | $160 | $1,097 | 585.6% |
| Gregory P. Glezen | $4,158 | $893 | -78.5% |
| Mark Brown | $4,181 | $797 | -80.9% |
| Green Acres of Freetown, LLC | $0 | $765 | -- |
| Jonathan J. Waltz | $1,181 | $758 | -35.8% |
| James Eaton | $1,013 | $729 | -28% |
| Main Street Farms, LLC | $18,734 | $707 | -96.2% |
| Eric G. Price | $0 | $691 | -- |
| Richard Moore | $391 | $610 | 56% |
| Donald Knickerbocker II | $511 | $506 | -1% |
| Judith L. Durand | $0 | $407 | -- |
| Linda Helms | $1,505 | $357 | -76.3% |
| Fred Griffen | $324 | $324 | 0% |
| Mary Bickford | $612 | $312 | -49% |
| Thomas McCall | $2,278 | $208 | -90.9% |
| Pilar Deines-Allis | $0 | $189 | -- |
| Rollan Elwood | $424 | $17 | -96% |
| Chavonne Laplant | $0 | $14 | -- |
| Barb-Education Farms | $13 | $0 | -100% |
| Carolyn Pudney | $3,250 | $0 | -100% |
| Dean Delavan | $539 | $0 | -100% |
| Joey D. Pudney | $7,080 | $0 | -100% |
| John Cardner | $19,190 | $0 | -100% |
| CCC | $88 | $0 | -100% |
| Adelbert R Carr | $340 | $0 | -100% |
| Commodity Credit Corporation | $2,729 | $0 | -100% |
| Commodity Credity Corporation | $1,277 | $0 | -100% |
| Commodity Credti Corporation | $64 | $0 | -100% |
| David Wilk | $31 | $0 | -100% |
| Farm Service Agency | $7,797 | $0 | -100% |
| Farm Service Agency/Commodity CRE | $91,177 | $0 | -100% |
| Fox Farms | $8,181 | $0 | -100% |
| FSA | $4,595 | $0 | -100% |
| Melissa A. Wilk | $31 | $0 | -100% |
| Michael T. Carroll | $10,742 | $0 | -100% |
| Roger Millen | $835 | $0 | -100% |
| Ronnie Miller | $5,966 | $0 | -100% |
| David F. Hicks | $1,990 | $0 | -100% |
| Dawn Zarnowski | $297 | $0 | -100% |
| Eric D. Peck | $1,822 | $0 | -100% |
| Shared Roots Farm, LLC | $11,250 | $0 | -100% |
| Virginia I. Karpenko | $262 | $0 | -100% |
| Cobblestone Valley Enterprises LL | $46,612 | $0 | -100% |
| Martin C. Short | $2,230 | $0 | -100% |
| Joanne Brown | $2,998 | $0 | -100% |
| Robert & Kyle Eaton Farms Partner | $51,316 | $0 | -100% |
| Total subsidies | $4,531,927 | $1,547,509 | -65.9% |
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