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In 2021, 45 farmers in cities within Albany County received a total of $507,641 in 75 farm subsidies, a 32.7% decrease compared to 2020, when the total was $753,809 in 139 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| C N Tommell Cattle Company, LLC | $206,316 | $107,192 | -48% |
| The Nature Conservancy | $96,594 | $100,000 | 3.5% |
| Valoze Greenhouses, Inc. | $0 | $97,021 | -- |
| Samuel C Tommell & Charles N Tommell - Hilltop Cattle Farms | $0 | $31,177 | -- |
| Matthew Vedder | $0 | $29,417 | -- |
| Reta Youngs | $18,271 | $24,376 | 33.4% |
| Tommell Livestock, LLC | $76,680 | $21,512 | -71.9% |
| Kevin D. Sisson | $33,981 | $17,310 | -49.1% |
| Kenneth Saddlemire | $15,390 | $11,186 | -27.3% |
| Golden Acres Charolais, LLC | $32,322 | $9,519 | -70.5% |
| Alan Lendrum | $30,509 | $8,323 | -72.7% |
| Mardi Crawford | $7,849 | $7,849 | 0% |
| Maver O. Becker & Jay Becker | $0 | $3,696 | -- |
| Brian a Whipple | $7,310 | $3,489 | -52.3% |
| Emily Powell | $2,789 | $2,789 | 0% |
| Inez Keppler and Paul Keppler JR | $5,542 | $2,660 | -52% |
| Hessian Hill Farm, LLC | $0 | $2,278 | -- |
| Stefanie J. Rivera - West Wind Acres | $0 | $2,086 | -- |
| Judith Starr | $8,955 | $1,930 | -78.4% |
| Ralph H. Miller | $0 | $1,791 | -- |
| Dennis Boomhower | $5,737 | $1,505 | -73.8% |
| Derrick Frank Deboer | $0 | $1,390 | -- |
| Nicole Marie Deboer | $5,612 | $1,390 | -75.2% |
| Paul Stinard Hacker | $3,854 | $1,319 | -65.8% |
| Robert Snyder | $5,324 | $1,310 | -75.4% |
| Susan E. Telfer | $1,555 | $1,223 | -21.4% |
| Irene J. Lounsbury | $990 | $1,199 | 21.1% |
| Proud Castle Farm | $1,236 | $1,194 | -3.4% |
| Beverly Petiet | $5,598 | $1,098 | -80.4% |
| Amanda Tessarzik | $0 | $1,060 | -- |
| Heather Kamin | $0 | $1,022 | -- |
| John Franklin-Feingold | $0 | $1,022 | -- |
| Eight Mile Creek Farm, Inc. | $0 | $913 | -- |
| Timothy F. Lippert | $1,911 | $828 | -56.7% |
| Joseph Muia | $0 | $822 | -- |
| Emily D. Vincent | $7,401 | $766 | -89.7% |
| Bari J Falese | $732 | $732 | 0% |
| Thomas Della F. Rocco | $2,213 | $590 | -73.3% |
| Neal Erickson | $2,682 | $579 | -78.4% |
| Elizabeth a Conrad Trust F/B/O Sandra I Conrad Jung | $2,317 | $517 | -77.7% |
| Mona M. Hunter | $1,426 | $460 | -67.7% |
| Rene M Descartes | $1,893 | $431 | -77.2% |
| Ernest Rau | $1,739 | $322 | -81.5% |
| Richard P Jung Irrevocable Trust | $906 | $196 | -78.4% |
| Larry Chase | $0 | $152 | -- |
| Adam Greenberg | $402 | $0 | -100% |
| Paul A. Levine | $4,066 | $0 | -100% |
| Paul Stinard Hacker Family Trust | $8,521 | $0 | -100% |
| Malachi Farms | $627 | $0 | -100% |
| William E. Hofmann | $931 | $0 | -100% |
| Beckeridge Farm | $29 | $0 | -100% |
| Charles N Tommell JR | $414 | $0 | -100% |
| Derrick F. Deboer | $5,557 | $0 | -100% |
| Inez Keppler | $1,059 | $0 | -100% |
| Maver O. Becker | $4,157 | $0 | -100% |
| Randall Grippin | $5,986 | $0 | -100% |
| Robert Rapp | $44 | $0 | -100% |
| Stefanie J. Rivera - West Wind Ac | $23,956 | $0 | -100% |
| Karen Leach R. Bechard | $366 | $0 | -100% |
| Kevin Reinisch | $2,653 | $0 | -100% |
| Robert P. van Etten | $690 | $0 | -100% |
| Cheryl Tefft-Baitsholts | $2,916 | $0 | -100% |
| Hilltop Cattle Farm | $381 | $0 | -100% |
| Samuel C Tommell & Charles N Tomm | $82,847 | $0 | -100% |
| Eight Mile Creek Farm | $10,980 | $0 | -100% |
| Gerard Boone | $1,593 | $0 | -100% |
| Total subsidies | $753,809 | $507,641 | -32.7% |
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