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In 2021, 101 farmers in cities within Orleans County received a total of $1.8 million in 210 farm subsidies, a 61.2% decrease compared to 2020, when the total was $4.7 million in 406 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Meadowbrook Farms | $266,732 | $208,692 | -21.8% |
| Toussaint Farms, L.L.C. | $141,306 | $139,230 | -1.5% |
| Daniel Thomas Dresser Jr. | $216,857 | $134,828 | -37.8% |
| Austin Farms, LLC | $171,489 | $122,189 | -28.7% |
| Scott P. Christ | $21,275 | $119,046 | 459.6% |
| Travis Scott Christ | $13,459 | $88,792 | 559.7% |
| Penna Farms, LLC | $102,781 | $74,520 | -27.5% |
| Hurd Orchards Springbrook Farms, LLC | $0 | $63,295 | -- |
| Dunham Family Farms | $165,986 | $54,200 | -67.3% |
| Roberts Farms | $140,087 | $50,197 | -64.2% |
| Darryl E. Sommerfeldt | $95,327 | $46,947 | -50.8% |
| Kurz Brothers | $64,516 | $46,208 | -28.4% |
| Dale C. Dillenbeck | $49,534 | $46,201 | -6.7% |
| Melissa Penna | $34,847 | $38,820 | 11.4% |
| Michael C. Mele | $84,130 | $36,781 | -56.3% |
| KS Wolf Farms, LLC | $142,117 | $35,218 | -75.2% |
| Ka-Cy Farms | $84,388 | $33,517 | -60.3% |
| Lloyd H. Christ Jr. | $83,688 | $30,729 | -63.3% |
| Michael Penna | $129,689 | $30,092 | -76.8% |
| Eric Bentley | $88,793 | $26,639 | -70% |
| Ryan Klotzbach | $82,401 | $22,546 | -72.6% |
| Charles Moore | $50,122 | $21,737 | -56.6% |
| Charles J. Hartway | $22,473 | $21,430 | -4.6% |
| Kirk L. Mathes | $61,975 | $21,240 | -65.7% |
| David Arthur Payne | $51,376 | $21,034 | -59.1% |
| Edward Zelazny | $65,558 | $18,073 | -72.4% |
| James Zelazny | $65,578 | $18,073 | -72.4% |
| Justin D. Penna | $18,816 | $14,503 | -22.9% |
| Pettit Farms, LLC | $132,333 | $12,879 | -90.3% |
| Lloyd H. Christ III | $3,420 | $12,718 | 271.9% |
| Philip D. Keppler | $45,944 | $11,807 | -74.3% |
| Gary Germeo | $28,100 | $11,508 | -59% |
| Michael Zelazny | $34,566 | $10,664 | -69.1% |
| Chester Zelazny | $35,915 | $9,677 | -73.1% |
| Bruce Sentiff | $21,220 | $9,149 | -56.9% |
| Kevin J. Wolf | $35,292 | $8,926 | -74.7% |
| Reg Overholt | $13,958 | $8,872 | -36.4% |
| Christopher Farms | $21,176 | $8,824 | -58.3% |
| Richard Collyer | $16,899 | $8,144 | -51.8% |
| Charles E. Mathes | $35,099 | $6,638 | -81.1% |
| Joseph R. Mathes | $35,174 | $6,638 | -81.1% |
| Richard E. Fisher | $30,865 | $6,616 | -78.6% |
| Steven Yousey | $19,343 | $5,675 | -70.7% |
| Larry Kennedy | $12,367 | $5,076 | -59% |
| Sandy Knoll Farms, Inc. | $397,007 | $5,069 | -98.7% |
| Gary Thering | $13,489 | $4,910 | -63.6% |
| Roberts Family Fruit Farm, LLC | $220,030 | $4,855 | -97.8% |
| Roger Waterson | $9,449 | $4,619 | -51.1% |
| H. H. Dobbins & Son, LLC | $110,180 | $4,601 | -95.8% |
| David A. Tuohey | $12,723 | $4,300 | -66.2% |
| Kenneth Evans | $11,169 | $4,196 | -62.4% |
| Donna Sommerfeldt | $2,462 | $3,853 | 56.5% |
| Kenneth E. Knights | $7,185 | $3,824 | -46.8% |
| Boyce Farms | $8,495 | $3,125 | -63.2% |
| G Hope Telovsky Trust | $4,909 | $3,034 | -38.2% |
| Benjamin Thering | $22,126 | $2,987 | -86.5% |
| Stone Hill Farms | $5,939 | $2,665 | -55.1% |
| Alonzo Evans | $5,584 | $2,436 | -56.4% |
| Mark Woodworth | $7,905 | $2,021 | -74.4% |
| SK Herefords, LLC | $9,286 | $1,942 | -79.1% |
| Douglas M. Petrie | $5,823 | $1,936 | -66.8% |
| James E. Mathes | $5,269 | $1,800 | -65.8% |
| Lyn Oaken Farms, Inc. | $231,467 | $1,760 | -99.2% |
| Patrick Woodworth | $2,904 | $1,555 | -46.5% |
| Mary L. Kersch | $0 | $1,259 | -- |
| Carol A. Hanlon | $2,039 | $1,190 | -41.6% |
| Douglas N. Watson | $8,199 | $1,172 | -85.7% |
| Ledge Rock Farms, LLC | $96,695 | $947 | -99% |
| James L. Blackburn | $0 | $871 | -- |
| David Piedmonte Jr. | $2,910 | $803 | -72.4% |
| Richard Satkowski | $1,655 | $756 | -54.3% |
| Linda J Gerhardy | $1,077 | $726 | -32.6% |
| Michael V. Crandall | $3,981 | $709 | -82.2% |
| James J. Piedimonte & Sons, Inc. | $224,620 | $685 | -99.7% |
| Gail M. Reynolds | $3,365 | $660 | -80.4% |
| Kevin Hess | $1,148 | $601 | -47.6% |
| Danny Krisher | $1,374 | $559 | -59.3% |
| Glenn Giltner Jr. | $1,606 | $550 | -65.8% |
| Daniel Bogden | $4,086 | $507 | -87.6% |
| Associated Brands, Inc. | $500 | $500 | 0% |
| John R. Kinsey | $793 | $409 | -48.4% |
| Xinxin Hung | $726 | $356 | -51% |
| Kathleen Sillick | $1,229 | $309 | -74.9% |
| Carolyn Bonter | $288 | $288 | 0% |
| Steven Piedmonte | $436 | $284 | -34.9% |
| Alana Keppler M. Welker | $2,046 | $273 | -86.7% |
| Wilma R. Bentley | $1,152 | $183 | -84.1% |
| Chris Wagner | $855 | $165 | -80.7% |
| Donald R. Lamay | $211 | $156 | -26.1% |
| Richard C. Downey | $143 | $143 | 0% |
| Thomas J. Winans | $286 | $87 | -69.6% |
| Charleston Newbould Jr. | $487 | $84 | -82.8% |
| Kenneth Baker | $5,295 | $70 | -98.7% |
| Adam K. Eick | $395 | $66 | -83.3% |
| Gardner's Farm Market, Inc. | $1,070 | $60 | -94.4% |
| William Feldman Jr. | $296 | $55 | -81.4% |
| Sally Anderson | $207 | $53 | -74.4% |
| Paul Rich | $169 | $37 | -78.1% |
| Pask Farms | $173 | $30 | -82.7% |
| Gary Marciszewski | $174 | $24 | -86.2% |
| Daniel T. Joy | $140 | $16 | -88.6% |
| Andy Hendel Farms | $91 | $0 | -100% |
| Christopher Neff | $1,675 | $0 | -100% |
| David M. Clark | $132 | $0 | -100% |
| Erie Way Tree Farm, LLC | $8,349 | $0 | -100% |
| Hurd Orchards Springbrook Farms L | $91,482 | $0 | -100% |
| Jaime L. Paratore | $1,520 | $0 | -100% |
| Joseph Clark | $146 | $0 | -100% |
| Marie McAllister | $631 | $0 | -100% |
| ME's Bees, LLC | $61 | $0 | -100% |
| Susan H. MacHamer | $416 | $0 | -100% |
| Theodore R. Spada Jr. | $286 | $0 | -100% |
| Timothy Gilman | $92 | $0 | -100% |
| Brent G. Mank | $300 | $0 | -100% |
| David Breeze | $1,045 | $0 | -100% |
| Kathryn Klotzbach | $4,602 | $0 | -100% |
| Poler Farms | $58 | $0 | -100% |
| Rf Bentley Farms | $4,184 | $0 | -100% |
| Scot Neuman | $5,457 | $0 | -100% |
| Shirley Mank | $328 | $0 | -100% |
| Jack R. Hansler | $152 | $0 | -100% |
| Linda M. Cecchini | $31,086 | $0 | -100% |
| Mary Lee Knights | $1,086 | $0 | -100% |
| Michael J. Lyons | $131 | $0 | -100% |
| Robert A. Scroger | $21 | $0 | -100% |
| Robert Pask | $525 | $0 | -100% |
| Roberts Farm Market, LLC | $2,468 | $0 | -100% |
| Roger George | $1,767 | $0 | -100% |
| Total subsidies | $4,658,289 | $1,809,719 | -61.2% |
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