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In 2021, 103 farmers in cities within Whitfield County received a total of $402,764 in 124 farm subsidies, a 52.6% decrease compared to 2020, when the total was $849,138 in 244 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brooker Farm, LLC | $33,710 | $76,469 | 126.8% |
| Wesley Allan Hawkins | $0 | $75,011 | -- |
| Down Time Ranch, LLC | $77,533 | $46,203 | -40.4% |
| Bert Watts | $0 | $20,413 | -- |
| Mark R. Cook | $37,808 | $11,331 | -70% |
| John Kiker | $38,739 | $8,907 | -77% |
| Mark E. Thomas | $5,731 | $8,626 | 50.5% |
| Duane Postelle | $11,263 | $7,336 | -34.9% |
| Nathan A. Cline | $41,534 | $6,017 | -85.5% |
| Missy Baldridge | $19,517 | $5,968 | -69.4% |
| Jeffrey Todd McDonald | $42,799 | $5,918 | -86.2% |
| Greg Phillips | $15,261 | $5,565 | -63.5% |
| Timothy Connell | $23,786 | $5,357 | -77.5% |
| Robert Keith | $29,384 | $4,928 | -83.2% |
| Ronnie G. Queen | $0 | $4,400 | -- |
| James Wilson | $44,848 | $3,968 | -91.2% |
| Allen Lee White | $25,962 | $3,660 | -85.9% |
| Lamar Elrod | $5,787 | $3,616 | -37.5% |
| James L. Harden | $6,006 | $3,140 | -47.7% |
| Jimmie Mason | $15,434 | $3,094 | -80% |
| Ray Deverell | $14,531 | $3,016 | -79.2% |
| Ernest Acree Jr. | $3,429 | $2,932 | -14.5% |
| Vernon L. Turner | $8,442 | $2,854 | -66.2% |
| Darren L. Brown | $0 | $2,805 | -- |
| Linda Pierce | $0 | $2,750 | -- |
| Sharon Rebecca Lewis | $2,942 | $2,712 | -7.8% |
| Lowell Moss | $14,189 | $2,585 | -81.8% |
| Thomas E. Kling | $11,630 | $2,363 | -79.7% |
| Robert Frady | $9,515 | $2,310 | -75.7% |
| Gerald Brown | $4,059 | $2,122 | -47.7% |
| John Arthur | $2,283 | $2,107 | -7.7% |
| Harold Baynes | $7,656 | $2,097 | -72.6% |
| Larry Dycus | $10,111 | $2,090 | -79.3% |
| Paul Bagby | $8,338 | $1,970 | -76.4% |
| Bernard Kenemer Jr. | $8,014 | $1,932 | -75.9% |
| Lisa Gowin | $2,255 | $1,864 | -17.3% |
| Joshua Colby Land | $7,698 | $1,863 | -75.8% |
| Dan Cline | $9,875 | $1,801 | -81.8% |
| Mitchell Bagby | $7,166 | $1,742 | -75.7% |
| Charles Ray Bruce | $1,353 | $1,667 | 23.2% |
| Brian Bailey | $4,125 | $1,664 | -59.7% |
| Kenneth Robertson | $6,116 | $1,575 | -74.2% |
| Edward W. Staten | $8,290 | $1,453 | -82.5% |
| Bryant B. Haws | $6,048 | $1,384 | -77.1% |
| Brent G. Nelson | $1,362 | $1,362 | 0% |
| Martin Pitts | $18,080 | $1,263 | -93% |
| Richard Travis Bearden | $2,376 | $1,253 | -47.3% |
| James L. Hammontree | $5,159 | $1,215 | -76.4% |
| Cecil Deverell | $5,290 | $1,208 | -77.2% |
| James Blake Bagley | $2,790 | $1,189 | -57.4% |
| Alan Steinle | $5,063 | $1,162 | -77% |
| Robert G. Cole | $4,636 | $1,116 | -75.9% |
| Jerry Leon Roper | $5,599 | $1,114 | -80.1% |
| Gowin Angus Farms, LLC | $3,101 | $1,059 | -65.8% |
| Ellen R. Beason | $3,234 | $971 | -70% |
| Don Allen Garrett | $2,338 | $964 | -58.8% |
| James H. Spence | $935 | $935 | 0% |
| Seaton & Bridges | $3,234 | $931 | -71.2% |
| John E. Hasty | $5,423 | $888 | -83.6% |
| Steve Dausey Cardin | $4,070 | $880 | -78.4% |
| Steve Dausey Cardin | $4,070 | $880 | -78.4% |
| Bruce Gray | $2,359 | $873 | -63% |
| Una T. Brown | $2,695 | $862 | -68% |
| Robert J & Darlene Dinges LV Trustee | $1,557 | $834 | -46.4% |
| Robert Alan Cearley | $5,428 | $833 | -84.7% |
| Fred Mayfield | $3,289 | $827 | -74.9% |
| Jolly Partnership, LLLP | $0 | $827 | -- |
| James F. Dycus | $4,398 | $814 | -81.5% |
| Paula E. Morrow | $0 | $809 | -- |
| Anthony R. McTaggart | $3,168 | $794 | -74.9% |
| Virginia Lee Countryman | $2,499 | $787 | -68.5% |
| Steven Craig Eslinger | $8,288 | $776 | -90.6% |
| Robert C. King | $3,630 | $758 | -79.1% |
| James Allen Crow | $2,840 | $742 | -73.9% |
| Jim Ensley | $2,134 | $724 | -66.1% |
| Bobby Cooper | $1,896 | $724 | -61.8% |
| Gerald Burgess | $3,708 | $719 | -80.6% |
| Danny Simmons | $5,508 | $684 | -87.6% |
| David C. Lowe | $3,889 | $672 | -82.7% |
| Harry Lusk | $2,860 | $666 | -76.7% |
| Harold L. Ridley | $2,992 | $665 | -77.8% |
| Everette P. Lowe | $3,003 | $644 | -78.6% |
| Denise Dickson | $3,223 | $613 | -81% |
| John E. Davis | $2,240 | $585 | -73.9% |
| Michael J. Gazaway | $1,561 | $536 | -65.7% |
| Lamar Jenkins | $924 | $483 | -47.7% |
| Austin Lamar Brown | $3,173 | $428 | -86.5% |
| James T. Fordham | $1,827 | $397 | -78.3% |
| Rebecca J. Dillard | $726 | $380 | -47.7% |
| Wallace G. Overton | $792 | $342 | -56.8% |
| Charles Hackney | $825 | $329 | -60.1% |
| Marty L. Hefner | $1,067 | $328 | -69.3% |
| Scott Arvil Saylors | $957 | $289 | -69.8% |
| Gaylord N. MacFadden Jr. | $660 | $284 | -57% |
| Gerald David Baynes | $2,008 | $283 | -85.9% |
| Angela Gail Carpenter | $693 | $270 | -61% |
| Phil Foster | $1,659 | $229 | -86.2% |
| Colter Judson Faith | $0 | $220 | -- |
| Margaret Anne Hammack | $1,960 | $214 | -89.1% |
| Altoona Holland | $462 | $200 | -56.7% |
| Rick C. Huggins | $297 | $151 | -49.2% |
| Larry J. Cooper | $674 | $114 | -83.1% |
| Aubrey G. Glassco | $239 | $80 | -66.5% |
| James Timothy Bagley | $9,990 | $0 | -100% |
| Bill Richards | $2,090 | $0 | -100% |
| Deerfield Properties, LLLP | $1,578 | $0 | -100% |
| Douglas P. Schneller | $3,306 | $0 | -100% |
| George Kerr | $2,200 | $0 | -100% |
| Jack Morton | $400 | $0 | -100% |
| James David Jolly | $5,774 | $0 | -100% |
| Jason Paul Lowe | $550 | $0 | -100% |
| Mark Marion Stanley | $83 | $0 | -100% |
| Willard E. Lewis Jr. | $550 | $0 | -100% |
| David Brown | $16,506 | $0 | -100% |
| Libby Sue Eslinger | $2,172 | $0 | -100% |
| Mack E. Brown | $1,904 | $0 | -100% |
| Total subsidies | $849,138 | $402,764 | -52.6% |
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