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In 2021, 80 farmers in cities within St. Clair County received a total of $702,629 in 140 farm subsidies, a 45.2% decrease compared to 2020, when the total was $1.3 million in 279 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brian Brunk | $20,083 | $73,299 | 265% |
| Jeffrey A. Furness | $180,874 | $69,316 | -61.7% |
| Wilson Farms, LLC | $120,331 | $39,844 | -66.9% |
| Michael D. Barr | $70,064 | $37,858 | -46% |
| Apostolos T Pozios | $29,723 | $29,723 | 0% |
| Bruce Jay Gardner | $54,095 | $27,702 | -48.8% |
| James Bolday | $42,251 | $26,441 | -37.4% |
| Harold Schneider | $31,122 | $26,164 | -15.9% |
| Carless Farming Company, LLC | $49,919 | $24,363 | -51.2% |
| Bernard M. Hillman | $39,296 | $24,353 | -38% |
| Robert Elton Partlo Jr. | $43,737 | $24,008 | -45.1% |
| Edward H Fahley | $62,293 | $22,429 | -64% |
| Mistalpa, LLC | $49,886 | $20,371 | -59.2% |
| Gerry Burgess | $28,328 | $14,447 | -49% |
| Howard Jackson | $1,407 | $14,377 | 921.8% |
| Michael T. Jenuwine | $18,641 | $14,306 | -23.3% |
| Michael Opificius | $35,562 | $14,064 | -60.5% |
| Jarred Matthew Shinn | $24,534 | $11,657 | -52.5% |
| James G. Wessel | $10,560 | $10,560 | 0% |
| Patrick J Bolday | $14,564 | $10,452 | -28.2% |
| Edward Bolday | $14,432 | $10,224 | -29.2% |
| Timothy B. Brown | $11,510 | $9,441 | -18% |
| Matthew Roose | $17,516 | $8,800 | -49.8% |
| James McKenney | $25,128 | $8,794 | -65% |
| Taylor S. Westbrook | $12,759 | $8,175 | -35.9% |
| Timothy David Furness | $11,471 | $7,150 | -37.7% |
| Schneider Farms, LLC | $5,634 | $6,880 | 22.1% |
| Sean T. Quain | $12,674 | $6,189 | -51.2% |
| John T. Kavanagh | $12,871 | $6,057 | -52.9% |
| BM Quain Farm - William G Quain Sole Proprietor | $11,484 | $5,686 | -50.5% |
| Duane Jurn | $12,522 | $5,532 | -55.8% |
| Glenn M. Westrick | $13,618 | $5,344 | -60.8% |
| Matthew Rapley | $7,110 | $5,058 | -28.9% |
| William M. Kean | $11,326 | $4,602 | -59.4% |
| Sopha Farms, Inc. | $10,440 | $4,523 | -56.7% |
| Michael J. Frantz | $11,337 | $4,514 | -60.2% |
| Ryan A. Onufrak | $4,295 | $4,295 | 0% |
| Matthew Gustke | $3,946 | $3,946 | 0% |
| Raymond Gleason | $7,853 | $3,774 | -51.9% |
| James F. Korth | $7,211 | $3,707 | -48.6% |
| Brett Robert Barr | $5,683 | $3,409 | -40% |
| Wayne C Hipfel | $3,727 | $3,196 | -14.2% |
| Kenneth R Langmesser | $15,744 | $3,003 | -80.9% |
| Patrick Ericson | $2,949 | $2,949 | 0% |
| Daniel Curtis Jackson | $2,451 | $2,832 | 15.5% |
| BS Farms, LLC | $6,083 | $2,164 | -64.4% |
| Bradley P. Kozlowski | $2,035 | $2,035 | 0% |
| Daniel P. Jackson | $4,876 | $2,016 | -58.7% |
| Lawrence P. Brennan | $1,969 | $1,969 | 0% |
| Bruce A. McClelland | $3,922 | $1,902 | -51.5% |
| Nathan Eifert | $2,968 | $1,422 | -52.1% |
| Ball Farms, LLC | $2,015 | $1,406 | -30.2% |
| Jonathan Eifert | $3,296 | $1,370 | -58.4% |
| Chris Lamay | $1,630 | $1,261 | -22.6% |
| Ryan Knust | $0 | $1,202 | -- |
| Brad Fuller | $2,918 | $1,102 | -62.2% |
| Lawrence Powers | $1,619 | $1,000 | -38.2% |
| Timothy H. McMurtrie | $2,091 | $855 | -59.1% |
| Mark Schweihofer | $4,665 | $799 | -82.9% |
| Robert S. Plonka Jr. | $1,712 | $799 | -53.3% |
| Mark Ballard | $797 | $751 | -5.8% |
| Dels Farm, LLC | $23,735 | $745 | -96.9% |
| William Hyde | $759 | $684 | -9.9% |
| Ogdens Sugar Bush, LLC | $0 | $666 | -- |
| Michael R. Butler | $1,268 | $583 | -54% |
| Kelly Pratt | $0 | $489 | -- |
| Joseph J. Nemecek | $1,064 | $478 | -55.1% |
| Michael Todaro | $363 | $411 | 13.2% |
| Gerald Warner | $1,914 | $403 | -78.9% |
| Lloyd R. Hoist | $0 | $384 | -- |
| Rachelle Measel | $377 | $377 | 0% |
| Mike Pirrone Produce, Inc. | $386 | $367 | -4.9% |
| Edward Dziubinski | $237 | $316 | 33.3% |
| Trent Surfus | $927 | $284 | -69.4% |
| Thomas K Andison | $2,232 | $181 | -91.9% |
| Herbert C. Welser Jr. | $733 | $157 | -78.6% |
| Anthony Theodorou | $0 | $126 | -- |
| William Schultz | $1,028 | $50 | -95.1% |
| Jeffrey L. Hutchinson | $1,755 | $39 | -97.8% |
| David Goretski | $229 | $22 | -90.4% |
| BR Farms, LLC | $958 | $0 | -100% |
| John H Waters | $8,624 | $0 | -100% |
| Gregory R. Smith | $1,418 | $0 | -100% |
| Walter Twiss | $3,570 | $0 | -100% |
| Michael George Crothers | $2,290 | $0 | -100% |
| Second Chance Farms, LLC | $1,311 | $0 | -100% |
| Verne Westrick Sr. | $536 | $0 | -100% |
| James Warner | $246 | $0 | -100% |
| Total subsidies | $1,281,517 | $702,629 | -45.2% |
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