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In 2021, 50 farmers in cities within Otsego County received a total of $290,722 in 81 farm subsidies, a 28.3% increase from 2020, when the total was $226,590 in 132 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Elenz, Inc. | $0 | $52,875 | -- |
| Timberline South, LLC | $0 | $52,875 | -- |
| Northern Timberlands, Inc. | $0 | $52,875 | -- |
| Steve Slivinski | $48,233 | $42,096 | -12.7% |
| Hibner & Son Forest Products, LLC | $0 | $22,630 | -- |
| Leonard Slivinski | $18,189 | $12,833 | -29.4% |
| Zaremba Properties, LLC | $11,158 | $9,976 | -10.6% |
| Tracey Simpson | $16,482 | $5,115 | -69% |
| John P. Spiker | $33,297 | $3,793 | -88.6% |
| Ernest Prusakiewicz | $4,095 | $2,992 | -26.9% |
| Becky A. Farmer | $3,564 | $2,909 | -18.4% |
| Richard Schlaufman | $2,809 | $2,822 | 0.5% |
| John Hendrickson | $2,108 | $2,529 | 20% |
| Ryan Grusczynski IV | $4,876 | $1,946 | -60.1% |
| Stephanie Keck-Fahler | $8,851 | $1,884 | -78.7% |
| Ronald R. Dreffs | $7,222 | $1,717 | -76.2% |
| Lester J. Howard | $4,972 | $1,456 | -70.7% |
| Larry Nowak | $2,142 | $1,157 | -46% |
| Neal J. Renkiewicz | $1,548 | $1,055 | -31.8% |
| Robert L. Baur | $0 | $1,045 | -- |
| Daniel Slivinski | $1,607 | $1,043 | -35.1% |
| Brian Koronka | $1,935 | $1,007 | -48% |
| Jeffrey Purgiel | $1,158 | $951 | -17.9% |
| Claude Huff | $2,714 | $910 | -66.5% |
| O'Rourke Farms | $4,391 | $843 | -80.8% |
| Leo Francis | $1,646 | $805 | -51.1% |
| Robert A. Dreffs | $717 | $762 | 6.3% |
| Roy Prusakiewicz | $6,267 | $722 | -88.5% |
| Thomas Prusakiewicz | $2,063 | $722 | -65% |
| Ralph J. Holewinski | $1,617 | $705 | -56.4% |
| Hidden Acres Sugar Bush | $38 | $700 | 1,742.1% |
| Richard Prusakiewicz | $1,177 | $700 | -40.5% |
| Brandenburg Farms | $596 | $616 | 3.4% |
| Waneta C. Cook | $11,485 | $609 | -94.7% |
| Fleming Shaff Acres, LLC | $2,842 | $600 | -78.9% |
| Brandie Marie Behnke-Slough | $1,006 | $432 | -57.1% |
| Connie Czarkowski | $1,047 | $407 | -61.1% |
| Donald Prusakiewicz | $1,183 | $405 | -65.8% |
| Gene Seibel | $447 | $261 | -41.6% |
| Douglas Francis | $386 | $190 | -50.8% |
| Lee N. Koronka | $792 | $180 | -77.3% |
| Jeffrey Smetzer | $4,150 | $153 | -96.3% |
| Delphine Rogers | $306 | $150 | -51% |
| Irene Borowiak | $75 | $101 | 34.7% |
| Anthony Dreffs | $86 | $88 | 2.3% |
| Dawn Kodatt | $0 | $30 | -- |
| Joshua R. Mouch | $167 | $25 | -85% |
| Tom Burzynski | $112 | $9 | -92% |
| Colleen Jozwiak | $48 | $8 | -83.3% |
| Joann R. Skowronski | $27 | $8 | -70.4% |
| Elmer Benchley | $431 | $0 | -100% |
| Herbert Gapinski | $248 | $0 | -100% |
| James T. Theisen | $304 | $0 | -100% |
| Jan Peterson | $965 | $0 | -100% |
| Jeanette Prusakiewicz | $25 | $0 | -100% |
| Lukas Adam Gordon | $280 | $0 | -100% |
| William Holewinski | $28 | $0 | -100% |
| Andrew Betz | $1,653 | $0 | -100% |
| Richard O'Rourke | $3,025 | $0 | -100% |
| Total subsidies | $226,590 | $290,722 | 28.3% |
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