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In 2021, 43 farmers in cities within Mercer County received a total of $357,475 in 55 farm subsidies, a 65.4% decrease compared to 2020, when the total was $1 million in 119 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Canaan Farm, LLC | $0 | $128,279 | -- |
| Madden's Greenhouse & Nursery, Inc. | $0 | $50,643 | -- |
| Rustin Farms | $116,891 | $39,395 | -66.3% |
| CCL Farming, LLC | $33,846 | $20,781 | -38.6% |
| Howard C. Myers | $26,877 | $17,466 | -35% |
| Scott Ellis | $59,701 | $15,278 | -74.4% |
| Rawley Farms, LLC | $0 | $12,895 | -- |
| Farmdale Farm, LLC | $34,265 | $11,693 | -65.9% |
| Walter Bonczkiewicz | $0 | $9,908 | -- |
| Di Paola Turkeys, Inc. | $50,322 | $7,368 | -85.4% |
| Integrity Agent, LLC | $6,335 | $5,977 | -5.7% |
| William Carter | $3,860 | $3,860 | 0% |
| Kateri a M Lemischka | $2,886 | $2,886 | 0% |
| Fairgrown Farm, LLC | $0 | $2,882 | -- |
| John K Bleimaier | $2,933 | $2,851 | -2.8% |
| Uncle Petes Farm, LLC | $0 | $2,410 | -- |
| Orvin L. Richard | $2,878 | $2,121 | -26.3% |
| John R. Hart Jr. | $6,122 | $2,052 | -66.5% |
| Sanders Iroquois Farm, LLC | $9,620 | $1,906 | -80.2% |
| Carol Fitzhugh Jacoby Revocable Trust | $4,663 | $1,810 | -61.2% |
| Charlize Katzenbach | $0 | $1,806 | -- |
| Charles W Appelget | $3,986 | $1,183 | -70.3% |
| D&R Greenway Land Trust | $1,171 | $1,171 | 0% |
| Peter Westergaard Living Trust | $7,712 | $1,148 | -85.1% |
| Beechtree Farm, LLC | $6,716 | $1,133 | -83.1% |
| Joseph M. Ruggieri | $2,173 | $1,042 | -52% |
| Johnson Enterprises of Illinois, LLC | $1,415 | $1,015 | -28.3% |
| Shoguslion, LLC | $5,500 | $971 | -82.3% |
| Mariah Fields Farm, LLC | $866 | $912 | 5.3% |
| The Colonial Sportsmen's Club, Inc. | $876 | $876 | 0% |
| Wildflower Homestead, LLC | $0 | $622 | -- |
| John L. Thurman | $1,033 | $555 | -46.3% |
| Curtis Crowell | $1,112 | $542 | -51.3% |
| Visual Encounters, Inc. | $0 | $469 | -- |
| Double Brook Farm, LLC | $37,380 | $385 | -99% |
| Stanley Adamcik | $753 | $358 | -52.5% |
| Gordon Bryant | $433 | $334 | -22.9% |
| Thomas R. Knutson | $10 | $128 | 1,180% |
| Dunwald Farm, LLC | $118 | $118 | 0% |
| Sharon J Hermone | $238 | $97 | -59.2% |
| Glenn Johnson | $338 | $61 | -82% |
| Lucia Stout Huebner | $597 | $58 | -90.3% |
| Rachel Harrell | $118 | $30 | -74.6% |
| Evergreen Orchard Farm, LLC | $148,382 | $0 | -100% |
| Comisky's Greenhouses, Inc. | $32,161 | $0 | -100% |
| Voorhees Greenhouses, LLC | $156,563 | $0 | -100% |
| Marchese Farm, LLC | $7,812 | $0 | -100% |
| Michael Jeffrey Tholis | $8,274 | $0 | -100% |
| George R. Kerr Sr. | $880 | $0 | -100% |
| Hopewell Valley Vineyards, LLC | $13,936 | $0 | -100% |
| Linda B Twill | $120 | $0 | -100% |
| Ashenfelter Vineyards, LLC | $4,183 | $0 | -100% |
| Edward Bruce Didonato | $546 | $0 | -100% |
| M. S. Conver, Inc. | $26,945 | $0 | -100% |
| Robert and Helen Duncan Family Living Trust | $1,772 | $0 | -100% |
| Terhune Orchards, LLC | $186,488 | $0 | -100% |
| Ray Dooling | $476 | $0 | -100% |
| Bet2win Farm, LLC | $12,199 | $0 | -100% |
| Total subsidies | $1,034,481 | $357,475 | -65.4% |
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