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In 2021, 177 farmers in cities within Cass County received a total of $2.2 million in 332 farm subsidies, a 74.4% decrease compared to 2020, when the total was $8.7 million in 774 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.
Farmers and Their Subsidies in Cities Associated with Cass County, Year Over Year
| Farmer | Total Received in 2020 | Total Received in 2021 | % Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Berrybrook Enterprises | $1,317,533 | $353,637 | -73.2% |
| Sparks Cedarlee Farm, LLC | $207,850 | $126,184 | -39.3% |
| Kirkdorfer Farms, Inc. | $348,747 | $98,654 | -71.7% |
| Grabemeyer Farms | $140,994 | $92,041 | -34.7% |
| Jacob Smith | $215,890 | $79,112 | -63.4% |
| Mckenzie Highlands, LLC | $263,056 | $67,106 | -74.5% |
| Gary Bartley | $506,887 | $65,149 | -87.1% |
| Central Produce Sales, Inc. | $144,195 | $64,423 | -55.3% |
| C&D Mendenhall, LLC | $113,620 | $53,291 | -53.1% |
| Maple Grove Farm, LLC | $140,816 | $51,700 | -63.3% |
| Rick Allan Schantz | $17,058 | $41,455 | 143% |
| George Clifford Brossman | $94,289 | $41,434 | -56.1% |
| Maplewood Farms, LLC | $1,019,587 | $41,301 | -95.9% |
| Jeffrey Lynn Tolbert | $115,219 | $39,322 | -65.9% |
| Poehlman Farms | $110,526 | $39,293 | -64.4% |
| Brookside Farm, LLC | $120,075 | $33,681 | -72% |
| Gregory Tidey | $85,751 | $28,336 | -67% |
| Sparks Cedarlee Poultry, LLC | $0 | $25,895 | -- |
| Kenneth Cloud | $42,844 | $23,264 | -45.7% |
| Ruth Ellen Ausra | $67,879 | $20,952 | -69.1% |
| Terry Allen Ausra | $67,879 | $20,952 | -69.1% |
| David Russell Cloud Trust | $44,444 | $20,609 | -53.6% |
| Kelsey Lake Farms Land, LLC | $67,598 | $20,122 | -70.2% |
| John Boynton | $538,578 | $20,112 | -96.3% |
| Robert Dan Brossman | $60,304 | $19,997 | -66.8% |
| Steven Kerry Baerg | $64,505 | $18,114 | -71.9% |
| Bruce J. Baerg | $55,998 | $17,760 | -68.3% |
| John M. Green | $48,436 | $17,646 | -63.6% |
| Dentler Farms, LLC | $549,878 | $17,516 | -96.8% |
| Manning Grain Farms, LLC | $45,978 | $16,969 | -63.1% |
| Andrew R. Brossman | $54,419 | $16,958 | -68.8% |
| Keith Howard McKenzie | $45,208 | $16,778 | -62.9% |
| Dallas Gene Cloud | $34,290 | $16,060 | -53.2% |
| Dale First | $42,496 | $15,666 | -63.1% |
| James Edward Green | $28,397 | $15,373 | -45.9% |
| Chadwyn J Tidey | $44,015 | $14,811 | -66.4% |
| Erik Oosterwal | $46,166 | $14,651 | -68.3% |
| Dan Stutsman | $32,253 | $14,383 | -55.4% |
| Joe Young Farms, LLC | $52,322 | $13,704 | -73.8% |
| David C. Reed | $33,009 | $13,104 | -60.3% |
| Rob Northrop Logging | $0 | $13,027 | -- |
| Jeffrey Kelly | $12,775 | $12,775 | 0% |
| Chris Tidey | $31,309 | $12,719 | -59.4% |
| Nichole Leanne Williams | $32,830 | $12,665 | -61.4% |
| Shaun M. Laporte | $27,027 | $12,066 | -55.4% |
| Barnett Farms, LLC | $97,324 | $11,707 | -88% |
| Sprague Farms, LLC | $38,560 | $11,515 | -70.1% |
| Blaske Farms, LLC | $42,516 | $11,131 | -73.8% |
| Paul Sweitzer | $32,126 | $10,786 | -66.4% |
| Carl P. Ruff | $37,505 | $10,262 | -72.6% |
| Joseph Scherer | $29,171 | $10,136 | -65.3% |
| Troy J. Wallace | $28,931 | $10,053 | -65.3% |
| Quad Farms | $7,321 | $9,762 | 33.3% |
| Steven Chris Waldschmidt | $24,437 | $9,622 | -60.6% |
| Ritter Farm, LLC | $0 | $9,432 | -- |
| Jeff Tidey | $20,462 | $9,417 | -54% |
| Phillip Henry Crawford | $35,585 | $9,176 | -74.2% |
| Brossmans Farm, LLC | $40,036 | $9,165 | -77.1% |
| Lyle Frank Springsteen | $27,379 | $9,149 | -66.6% |
| Robert T. Stauffer | $7,856 | $8,908 | 13.4% |
| Milton Preston | $8,650 | $8,067 | -6.7% |
| Michael Vosburgh | $16,606 | $7,842 | -52.8% |
| Paul A. Peters | $17,693 | $7,538 | -57.4% |
| John H. Smith | $21,493 | $7,481 | -65.2% |
| Benjamin Waldschmidt Jr. | $31,558 | $6,975 | -77.9% |
| Mitchell Bramley | $15,993 | $6,744 | -57.8% |
| Robert Schrader | $14,084 | $6,666 | -52.7% |
| David Harold Leach | $22,358 | $6,225 | -72.2% |
| Esther Louise Leach | $22,523 | $6,192 | -72.5% |
| Thomas Florea | $17,392 | $6,189 | -64.4% |
| Paul Burns | $18,413 | $6,030 | -67.3% |
| Alan Dean Rice | $16,910 | $5,958 | -64.8% |
| Tumbleson Farm, LLC | $12,696 | $5,821 | -54.2% |
| Roger L. Stamp | $10,885 | $5,723 | -47.4% |
| Delbert Lee Rice | $18,346 | $5,670 | -69.1% |
| Joshua Cloud | $13,181 | $5,622 | -57.3% |
| Brent High | $17,142 | $5,550 | -67.6% |
| Roseland Organic Farms, LLC | $4,954 | $5,537 | 11.8% |
| Robert Charles Dohm | $11,925 | $5,478 | -54.1% |
| Susan Dussel | $16,655 | $5,444 | -67.3% |
| Leon J. Brown | $11,879 | $5,382 | -54.7% |
| Ray D. Brown | $12,245 | $5,382 | -56% |
| Randy Lausch | $5,227 | $5,227 | 0% |
| Byron Kephart | $13,344 | $4,802 | -64% |
| Jennie Lee Crawford | $17,791 | $4,587 | -74.2% |
| Richard Atkinson | $4,427 | $4,503 | 1.7% |
| Roger Emmitt | $8,733 | $4,351 | -50.2% |
| Robert Alan Seem | $10,712 | $4,206 | -60.7% |
| Thomas Kendle | $8,273 | $3,582 | -56.7% |
| Israel L. Yoder | $14,406 | $3,457 | -76% |
| Carl Stover | $6,151 | $3,341 | -45.7% |
| Nicholas Keith Morris | $13,079 | $3,242 | -75.2% |
| Martin A. Dussel | $7,290 | $3,225 | -55.8% |
| Gary A. Carlile | $3,059 | $3,173 | 3.7% |
| Richard L. Ruff | $10,642 | $3,147 | -70.4% |
| Dennis D. Woods | $2,189 | $2,942 | 34.4% |
| Joel R. Preston | $5,086 | $2,925 | -42.5% |
| Michael Dussel | $7,071 | $2,892 | -59.1% |
| David Knepple | $6,084 | $2,730 | -55.1% |
| Arthur Dale Hartsell | $7,601 | $2,705 | -64.4% |
| Keith Arthur Hartsell | $7,601 | $2,705 | -64.4% |
| Patrick J. Laporte | $4,004 | $2,579 | -35.6% |
| Carl Vosburgh | $5,235 | $2,500 | -52.2% |
| Paula S. Ralph | $2,436 | $2,436 | 0% |
| Lawrence W. Holz | $2,361 | $2,361 | 0% |
| Christine Tolbert | $6,491 | $2,345 | -63.9% |
| David L. Reed | $7,947 | $2,328 | -70.7% |
| Roger W. Miller | $5,253 | $2,272 | -56.7% |
| Thomas W. Villwock | $4,773 | $2,174 | -54.5% |
| Lyle Doyle II | $4,963 | $2,169 | -56.3% |
| Edward G. Smith | $5,486 | $2,134 | -61.1% |
| Yvonne Evans | $1,934 | $1,934 | 0% |
| Carol Terry | $4,950 | $1,917 | -61.3% |
| Dennis Rumsey | $5,192 | $1,865 | -64.1% |
| Andrew Yeo | $4,414 | $1,803 | -59.2% |
| Kathy Asmus | $5,310 | $1,770 | -66.7% |
| Susan C Szymonski | $1,666 | $1,666 | 0% |
| Byde D Kephart | $1,682 | $1,655 | -1.6% |
| James Scott | $2,705 | $1,634 | -39.6% |
| Linda Wright | $1,413 | $1,624 | 14.9% |
| Brian Grabemeyer | $10,489 | $1,545 | -85.3% |
| Randy N. Hoenes Jr. | $5,372 | $1,470 | -72.6% |
| Pineview Farm, LLC | $4,122 | $1,450 | -64.8% |
| Boyd Bailiwick, Inc. | $3,851 | $1,445 | -62.5% |
| Jeffrey Green | $5,486 | $1,424 | -74% |
| Andrew Ausra | $2,248 | $1,369 | -39.1% |
| Todd File | $6,386 | $1,336 | -79.1% |
| Michael J. File | $3,996 | $1,324 | -66.9% |
| Craig McIntyre | $5,515 | $1,258 | -77.2% |
| Kelly Richard Burkett | $3,674 | $1,144 | -68.9% |
| Louann Robinson | $5,781 | $1,136 | -80.3% |
| Nathan E. Robinson | $5,782 | $1,136 | -80.4% |
| David Butts, DVM | $1,113 | $1,113 | 0% |
| Charley Hatley | $2,217 | $1,066 | -51.9% |
| Ronald G. Hayden | $3,141 | $1,054 | -66.4% |
| Max John Wright | $3,626 | $1,031 | -71.6% |
| Joseph Young Sr. | $2,426 | $1,003 | -58.7% |
| Richard C. Smith | $2,177 | $971 | -55.4% |
| Philip Meiser | $1,847 | $963 | -47.9% |
| James Jerue | $913 | $913 | 0% |
| Michael G. Ruff | $1,553 | $849 | -45.3% |
| James G. Green | $1,811 | $840 | -53.6% |
| Sally J. Connor | $1,675 | $836 | -50.1% |
| David E Accoe | $2,287 | $810 | -64.6% |
| Andrew Hershberger | $919 | $800 | -12.9% |
| Chadley a Crofoot | $793 | $793 | 0% |
| Richard G. Ferrara | $783 | $783 | 0% |
| Richard John Accoe | $2,442 | $758 | -69% |
| Owen L. Rice | $1,333 | $744 | -44.2% |
| Michael J. Brosnan | $702 | $702 | 0% |
| Robinson-Seelye Farms | $32,032 | $698 | -97.8% |
| Ronald Robert Seem | $628 | $673 | 7.2% |
| Rosalyn Marcyan | $660 | $660 | 0% |
| Linda Morris | $2,479 | $618 | -75.1% |
| Brent Moore | $1,254 | $610 | -51.4% |
| Gary Wales | $7,114 | $610 | -91.4% |
| Wilmadean Schepper-Baker | $1,511 | $563 | -62.7% |
| Martin Smith | $1,254 | $558 | -55.5% |
| Walker Precision Agent, LLC | $839 | $528 | -37.1% |
| Hillview Farms, LLC | $1,260 | $525 | -58.3% |
| David L. McCartney | $1,068 | $484 | -54.7% |
| Polmateer, LLC | $1,911 | $446 | -76.7% |
| Craig Eaton | $906 | $322 | -64.5% |
| Thomas Boynton | $799 | $321 | -59.8% |
| Kristine J. Stover | $259 | $259 | 0% |
| Richard A. Hoff | $4,680 | $248 | -94.7% |
| Michael E. Soja | $1,229 | $244 | -80.1% |
| Edith Carey | $1,242 | $192 | -84.5% |
| Terry Brown | $249 | $175 | -29.7% |
| Michael P. Hill | $0 | $172 | -- |
| Patricia Villanueva | $358 | $104 | -70.9% |
| Joseph Roy Van Tuyle | $261 | $87 | -66.7% |
| Kenneth Taylor | $237 | $86 | -63.7% |
| Stanley Disher | $2,047 | $52 | -97.5% |
| Christy Krupp | $1,674 | $8 | -99.5% |
| Ledger Krupp | $1,674 | $8 | -99.5% |
| Leonard Edmunds | $0 | $2 | -- |
| Brian Charlston | $188 | $0 | -100% |
| Dean M. Hass | $545 | $0 | -100% |
| Dennis Wooden | $18,787 | $0 | -100% |
| Douglas Smith | $87 | $0 | -100% |
| Dussel's Farm Market & Greenhouses, Inc. | $13,162 | $0 | -100% |
| Gail Ehret | $3,303 | $0 | -100% |
| Gary Hollenbeck | $151 | $0 | -100% |
| Jonathon P. Laporte | $535 | $0 | -100% |
| Laporte Farms, Inc. | $3,025 | $0 | -100% |
| Lee H. Boyd II | $359 | $0 | -100% |
| Louis Csokasy | $303 | $0 | -100% |
| Mark S. Lee | $215 | $0 | -100% |
| Patrick Abiney | $50 | $0 | -100% |
| Robert Locke | $777 | $0 | -100% |
| Rolling Rock Farm, LLC | $29,371 | $0 | -100% |
| Ronald J. Riem | $204 | $0 | -100% |
| Scott L. Teter | $62 | $0 | -100% |
| Terry L. Foltz | $118 | $0 | -100% |
| Brent J. Robinson | $2,252 | $0 | -100% |
| Daniel A. Robson | $198 | $0 | -100% |
| David Daisy | $31,635 | $0 | -100% |
| Dexter McMichael | $1,041 | $0 | -100% |
| Donald Wyant | $86 | $0 | -100% |
| Harold First | $13,039 | $0 | -100% |
| Jay R Suseland | $97 | $0 | -100% |
| Jon H First | $13,350 | $0 | -100% |
| Kelly J. Cromer | $941 | $0 | -100% |
| Larry Tumbleson | $5,163 | $0 | -100% |
| Michael Backus | $130 | $0 | -100% |
| Michael Grabemeyer | $4,050 | $0 | -100% |
| Michael Stockwell | $2,096 | $0 | -100% |
| Mitchell Family Limited Partnership No Six | $62,241 | $0 | -100% |
| Mitchell Farm Investments, LLC | $66,510 | $0 | -100% |
| Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians | $93 | $0 | -100% |
| Robert Vosburgh | $744 | $0 | -100% |
| Roger Swisher | $1,376 | $0 | -100% |
| Silverstone Sales, Inc. | $35,625 | $0 | -100% |
| Adam M. Osborn | $227 | $0 | -100% |
| Charlotte Fletcher | $177 | $0 | -100% |
| Historic Farms | $1,264 | $0 | -100% |
| James L. Becraft | $770 | $0 | -100% |
| Kevin A. Stack | $873 | $0 | -100% |
| Nelson's Enterprise, Inc. | $1,779 | $0 | -100% |
| Samantha Lee Lee | $750 | $0 | -100% |
| Thomas L. Bennett | $7,860 | $0 | -100% |
| Well Watered Farm, LLC | $347 | $0 | -100% |
| James D. Hershberger | $146 | $0 | -100% |
| Regeneration Farm | $1,299 | $0 | -100% |
| Steven E. Asmus | $473 | $0 | -100% |
| Total subsidies | $8,682,660 | $2,226,731 | -74.4% |
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