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In 2021, 81 farmers in cities within Iron County received a total of $160,796 in 94 farm subsidies, an 80.1% decrease compared to 2020, when the total was $807,397 in 227 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| William E. Tate | $52,701 | $11,008 | -79.1% |
| Larry Clarence Gilmore | $78,001 | $10,835 | -86.1% |
| Arcadia Valley Livestock, LLC | $36,344 | $10,532 | -71% |
| John a Sample and Sandra M Sample Rev Trustee-John Sample | $66,191 | $10,221 | -84.6% |
| Dwayne Ellis | $21,442 | $7,837 | -63.5% |
| Tony Abney | $35,128 | $7,111 | -79.8% |
| Marion Thomas Coleman | $50,907 | $5,985 | -88.2% |
| Douglas M. Funk | $18,967 | $5,460 | -71.2% |
| Gene Parker | $21,481 | $4,958 | -76.9% |
| Tim Berghaus | $33,335 | $4,368 | -86.9% |
| Alice L Goehman | $8,545 | $3,292 | -61.5% |
| Matthew Dunn | $3,034 | $3,182 | 4.9% |
| Stark Farms, Inc. | $12,386 | $3,075 | -75.2% |
| Russell Collins | $13,070 | $3,038 | -76.8% |
| Dennis Parker | $16,868 | $2,996 | -82.2% |
| Tommie E. Gibbs | $15,736 | $2,993 | -81% |
| Freund Farms, LLC | $15,150 | $2,743 | -81.9% |
| James Funk | $8,667 | $2,450 | -71.7% |
| Brian Wooten | $8,778 | $2,398 | -72.7% |
| Julie Boswell | $11,575 | $2,365 | -79.6% |
| Eli Sample | $11,343 | $2,283 | -79.9% |
| Frederick Michael Ruble | $5,902 | $1,936 | -67.2% |
| Ben W. Wharton | $13,363 | $1,907 | -85.7% |
| Brian Tyndall | $7,513 | $1,756 | -76.6% |
| Wm T. Wilson Sr. | $2,079 | $1,710 | -17.7% |
| Ricky Turnbough | $16,751 | $1,679 | -90% |
| Brad Parker | $14,937 | $1,622 | -89.1% |
| Wooten Farms, LLC | $6,084 | $1,570 | -74.2% |
| April D. Jones | $7,172 | $1,565 | -78.2% |
| Marguerite M. Barnes | $7,425 | $1,469 | -80.2% |
| Amy Elizabeth Lambert | $4,200 | $1,464 | -65.1% |
| Gerry Stephens | $8,701 | $1,426 | -83.6% |
| Roberta Middleton | $4,686 | $1,422 | -69.7% |
| Robert R. Allgier | $5,203 | $1,254 | -75.9% |
| Jason Funk | $5,274 | $1,206 | -77.1% |
| Jerry Belmar | $4,224 | $1,160 | -72.5% |
| Kenneth Wooten | $4,488 | $1,138 | -74.6% |
| David S. Middleton | $7,590 | $1,104 | -85.5% |
| Larry Campbell | $4,752 | $1,102 | -76.8% |
| E. L. Blanton Jr. | $5,689 | $1,101 | -80.6% |
| Charles M. Risher | $4,313 | $1,070 | -75.2% |
| Chris M. Miller | $2,371 | $949 | -60% |
| Chris Miller | $4,736 | $949 | -80% |
| James Aldridge | $4,543 | $928 | -79.6% |
| Mark Conner | $6,366 | $913 | -85.7% |
| Donald L. Firebaugh | $2,112 | $868 | -58.9% |
| Kevin Firebaugh | $2,112 | $858 | -59.4% |
| Zachary Ridlon | $4,235 | $836 | -80.3% |
| Trenton Wade Jones | $3,373 | $828 | -75.5% |
| Brian McFadden | $3,619 | $827 | -77.1% |
| David L. Huff | $2,640 | $776 | -70.6% |
| James Hughes | $938 | $757 | -19.3% |
| Tony Randell Harbison | $5,376 | $742 | -86.2% |
| Russell Hamilton | $2,629 | $742 | -71.8% |
| Wanda L. Gruen | $2,575 | $735 | -71.5% |
| Dale Whited | $2,668 | $707 | -73.5% |
| Kenneth L. Mathes | $4,576 | $636 | -86.1% |
| James Scaggs | $2,696 | $621 | -77% |
| Lucy A. Alcorn | $1,675 | $579 | -65.4% |
| Kyle Danback | $2,541 | $571 | -77.5% |
| Charles D. Buford | $5,842 | $568 | -90.3% |
| Willis Alcorn | $3,286 | $557 | -83% |
| Patrick Crowley | $3,688 | $520 | -85.9% |
| Max Randolph | $1,980 | $518 | -73.8% |
| Walter E & Lora a Henk Revocable Trust | $0 | $506 | -- |
| Ronald Laird | $2,024 | $502 | -75.2% |
| Jewel Miller | $3,378 | $490 | -85.5% |
| Harold West | $2,647 | $481 | -81.8% |
| GDK Farms, LLC | $1,031 | $473 | -54.1% |
| Timothy Whited | $2,178 | $467 | -78.6% |
| Craig Foster | $1,606 | $439 | -72.7% |
| Rodney Patterson | $5,012 | $431 | -91.4% |
| William T. Wilson Jr. | $2,255 | $364 | -83.9% |
| Patrick Allen Brown | $1,485 | $304 | -79.5% |
| Donald G. Lee | $1,797 | $298 | -83.4% |
| Shelby Tripp | $522 | $275 | -47.3% |
| Ashley M. Turnbough | $1,966 | $273 | -86.1% |
| 4-S Cattle & Timber, LLC | $252 | $252 | 0% |
| Terry Jones | $396 | $240 | -39.4% |
| Michael Leland Redmon | $1,016 | $137 | -86.5% |
| Craig Allen Claney | $88 | $88 | 0% |
| Charles Chuck Toppins | $330 | $0 | -100% |
| Daniel A. Miller | $5,775 | $0 | -100% |
| Kathleen Ahern | $77 | $0 | -100% |
| Michael Alcorn | $880 | $0 | -100% |
| Reginald Kim Harris | $3,850 | $0 | -100% |
| Richard Childers | $275 | $0 | -100% |
| James Voges | $1,036 | $0 | -100% |
| Darren Wayne Thurston | $2,475 | $0 | -100% |
| Donald L. Pinkley | $1,375 | $0 | -100% |
| Greg Amelung | $1,210 | $0 | -100% |
| Kevin Pollock | $1,760 | $0 | -100% |
| Mairs Livestock Company LP | $3,732 | $0 | -100% |
| Pamela Benson | $110 | $0 | -100% |
| Valli R. Parker | $67 | $0 | -100% |
| William Benson | $220 | $0 | -100% |
| Total subsidies | $807,397 | $160,796 | -80.1% |
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