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In 2021, 174 farmers in cities within Rowan County received a total of $1.3 million in 282 farm subsidies, a 71.9% decrease compared to 2020, when the total was $4.5 million in 590 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 Rowan County, Year Over Year
| Farmer | Total Received in 2020 | Total Received in 2021 | % Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| George L Pless & Sons Dairy, Inc. | $160,443 | $125,782 | -21.6% |
| C & H Grain, LLC | $217,336 | $108,028 | -50.3% |
| 2 F Farms | $250,114 | $94,785 | -62.1% |
| Sarah L. Foster | $223,144 | $83,004 | -62.8% |
| Steven E. Campbell | $145,879 | $66,944 | -54.1% |
| Bobby Waller Farms, LLC | $140,857 | $60,717 | -56.9% |
| P and P Cattle Company | $72,477 | $59,322 | -18.2% |
| Red Maple Logging Company, Inc. | $0 | $52,875 | -- |
| Corriher Bros Dairy, Inc. | $77,871 | $40,101 | -48.5% |
| Shaver Forestry, LLC | $0 | $35,465 | -- |
| Knox Grain Farms | $65,654 | $30,906 | -52.9% |
| Jason B. Smith | $56,624 | $29,245 | -48.4% |
| Johnstonefarms, LLC | $0 | $24,678 | -- |
| Lawson Kim Starnes | $0 | $22,806 | -- |
| Michael L. Owen | $38,438 | $20,785 | -45.9% |
| Knox Hill Farm, LLC | $99,674 | $19,208 | -80.7% |
| Philip Alton Graham | $34,582 | $17,089 | -50.6% |
| Morrison Farm Associates II Limited Partnership | $0 | $16,293 | -- |
| Seagraves Farm, LLC | $20,280 | $14,897 | -26.5% |
| Fred H. Snyder | $34,258 | $14,032 | -59% |
| James Todd Mauldin | $97,430 | $13,253 | -86.4% |
| Moore Farms, Inc. | $0 | $11,015 | -- |
| Hamby Farm, Inc. | $27,375 | $10,598 | -61.3% |
| Greyland Eugene Rogers | $7,722 | $10,526 | 36.3% |
| Eric W. Pence | $22,273 | $9,966 | -55.3% |
| Clinton Ray Stirewalt | $11,906 | $9,809 | -17.6% |
| Timothy P. Shue | $19,111 | $9,555 | -50% |
| Chad M. Yates | $18,262 | $9,185 | -49.7% |
| Braxton R. Barger | $31,357 | $9,106 | -71% |
| Richard E. Deal | $26,042 | $8,144 | -68.7% |
| Clarendon Associates | $12,699 | $7,185 | -43.4% |
| Graham Grain Farms, LLC | $9,980 | $7,010 | -29.8% |
| Joseph C. Graham Jr. | $8,953 | $6,839 | -23.6% |
| Jeremy Smith Logging & Grading | $0 | $6,831 | -- |
| Miller Family Farm | $6,257 | $6,513 | 4.1% |
| Kluttz Farms, LLC | $19,991 | $6,225 | -68.9% |
| Don Ray Yost | $0 | $6,223 | -- |
| Alan Reynolds | $11,815 | $5,872 | -50.3% |
| Raymond Elmore Earp JR Family Trust | $0 | $5,540 | -- |
| Five Forks Farms, LLC | $4,145 | $4,787 | 15.5% |
| Glen Alan Fisher | $7,033 | $4,650 | -33.9% |
| Jerry Whitaker | $12,771 | $4,464 | -65% |
| Murray A. Corriher | $21,062 | $4,384 | -79.2% |
| Eric Moore | $16,241 | $4,223 | -74% |
| Randy W. Barringer | $8,367 | $4,184 | -50% |
| Charlie T. Shepherd | $13,866 | $3,970 | -71.4% |
| Ridgecrest Farm | $9,045 | $3,479 | -61.5% |
| Robert D. Sloop | $8,676 | $3,440 | -60.4% |
| Margaret Blythe - Margaret a Blythe Revocable Inter Vivos Trustee | $9,196 | $3,425 | -62.8% |
| Oscho R Deal | $10,941 | $3,379 | -69.1% |
| Joel Kevin Huffman | $0 | $3,316 | -- |
| Justin Teeter | $15,558 | $3,232 | -79.2% |
| Third Creek Farm II, LLC | $0 | $3,080 | -- |
| Mark Miles Soeth - Mark and Joan Soeth Revocable Trust | $18,296 | $3,049 | -83.3% |
| Jerry D. Kluttz | $6,456 | $2,995 | -53.6% |
| Anthony B. Armstrong | $10,601 | $2,974 | -71.9% |
| Lanny Lamar Burleson | $6,681 | $2,831 | -57.6% |
| Gary Blythe | $2,600 | $2,631 | 1.2% |
| Carl D. Pless Jr. | $11,645 | $2,596 | -77.7% |
| John W. Monteith | $10,422 | $2,536 | -75.7% |
| Correll Farms, LLC | $24,698 | $2,434 | -90.1% |
| Thomas A. Hall | $8,894 | $2,389 | -73.1% |
| Scott J. Shaver | $3,876 | $2,314 | -40.3% |
| Carolyn Moore Kluttz | $5,934 | $2,169 | -63.4% |
| Wade W. Myers Jr. | $7,654 | $2,127 | -72.2% |
| Alan G. McKinney | $3,616 | $2,102 | -41.9% |
| Eric M. Sides | $0 | $2,035 | -- |
| Joshua Wilson Teague | $8,654 | $1,955 | -77.4% |
| Garrett Teeter | $8,954 | $1,940 | -78.3% |
| Crystal Acres, LLC | $8,929 | $1,909 | -78.6% |
| William A. Corriher Jr. | $3,784 | $1,899 | -49.8% |
| Anderson Agricultural LP | $15,020 | $1,883 | -87.5% |
| Timothy Allen Livengood | $10,678 | $1,742 | -83.7% |
| Christopher W. Corriher | $7,246 | $1,684 | -76.8% |
| Forest Eugene Stoner | $2,452 | $1,677 | -31.6% |
| Three Rivers Land Trust, Inc. | $1,655 | $1,655 | 0% |
| Jacob Franklin Parks | $5,225 | $1,654 | -68.3% |
| Chris W. Morgan | $7,051 | $1,581 | -77.6% |
| Tommy R. Graham | $7,943 | $1,552 | -80.5% |
| James R. Mauney Jr. | $3,103 | $1,537 | -50.5% |
| Bruce L. Miller | $3,851 | $1,490 | -61.3% |
| Gary M. Harrison | $1,949 | $1,450 | -25.6% |
| Wesley G. Steele | $6,885 | $1,407 | -79.6% |
| Robert Lee Graham Jr. | $4,048 | $1,349 | -66.7% |
| King Angus, LLC | $6,101 | $1,319 | -78.4% |
| Charlotte N Molrine | $1,259 | $1,296 | 2.9% |
| Jimmie L. Kesler | $5,313 | $1,262 | -76.2% |
| Johnny F. Harrison Jr. | $6,066 | $1,257 | -79.3% |
| Jeffrey M. Wehr | $2,676 | $1,237 | -53.8% |
| Michael H. Miller | $4,136 | $1,230 | -70.3% |
| Donald C. Myers | $6,703 | $1,149 | -82.9% |
| Randy L. Baker | $6,474 | $1,139 | -82.4% |
| Steven Todd Kesler | $0 | $1,100 | -- |
| Claudia Shepherd | $4,466 | $1,064 | -76.2% |
| Robert Bradley Graham | $4,153 | $963 | -76.8% |
| Jerry Wayne Freeze | $4,004 | $950 | -76.3% |
| Dennis A. Corriher | $7,645 | $925 | -87.9% |
| Charles R Honbarger | $4,898 | $897 | -81.7% |
| Gary W. Kidd | $4,534 | $852 | -81.2% |
| David Mendez-Velazquez | $8,596 | $838 | -90.3% |
| John W. Koontz | $2,079 | $820 | -60.6% |
| David F. Shue | $2,797 | $811 | -71% |
| Gail W. Sharpe | $2,948 | $802 | -72.8% |
| David Grant Walters | $0 | $781 | -- |
| Stephen J. Eagle | $3,234 | $765 | -76.3% |
| Patterson Farm, Inc. | $503,418 | $754 | -99.9% |
| Richard C. Moore | $2,909 | $742 | -74.5% |
| Eleanor E. Potts | $2,948 | $736 | -75% |
| Mark E. Brown | $3,795 | $716 | -81.1% |
| Sheryl R. Johnson | $1,901 | $700 | -63.2% |
| Nellie H Ramsue | $2,772 | $694 | -75% |
| Terry S Stukbauer | $0 | $689 | -- |
| Robert Mark Mauldin | $0 | $686 | -- |
| Donald R. Bogle | $1,383 | $685 | -50.5% |
| Keith Newcomer | $417 | $662 | 58.8% |
| Dixie S. Follette | $0 | $660 | -- |
| Robert Jay Wilson Knox Jr. | $3,365 | $659 | -80.4% |
| Florence Chance Trust | $2,020 | $644 | -68.1% |
| Albert M. Miller | $1,106 | $625 | -43.5% |
| James C. Greene | $2,280 | $621 | -72.8% |
| Von S. Fraley | $4,267 | $619 | -85.5% |
| Adam L. Shoe | $0 | $605 | -- |
| Donald Bostian | $2,332 | $585 | -74.9% |
| Coy G. Eagle | $1,961 | $559 | -71.5% |
| Mitchell L. Tyler | $3,553 | $550 | -84.5% |
| Goodnight's Greenhouse | $6,282 | $541 | -91.4% |
| Laymond P Barger JR | $5,405 | $535 | -90.1% |
| The Myers Family Trust | $798 | $526 | -34.1% |
| Martin Miller | $895 | $514 | -42.6% |
| Paul Michael Phifer | $1,826 | $501 | -72.6% |
| Kimberly A. Marsh | $787 | $484 | -38.5% |
| Joseph Brooks Stroud | $2,369 | $469 | -80.2% |
| Odell W. Petrea Jr. | $2,083 | $467 | -77.6% |
| Mark Beaver | $1,723 | $462 | -73.2% |
| Bradley D. McKnight | $1,089 | $450 | -58.7% |
| Henry A. Pless | $2,123 | $447 | -78.9% |
| Robert Keith Johnstone | $1,539 | $431 | -72% |
| Luther John Lyerly | $2,068 | $430 | -79.2% |
| William G. Gaylord | $0 | $428 | -- |
| Earl B. Funderburk | $2,380 | $391 | -83.6% |
| Todd W. Moore | $0 | $378 | -- |
| Greener Pastures, Inc. | $1,993 | $366 | -81.6% |
| Christopher Wayne Cline | $1,926 | $338 | -82.5% |
| Garrett Raper | $1,199 | $335 | -72.1% |
| James A. Miller | $825 | $329 | -60.1% |
| Timothy L. White | $2,173 | $328 | -84.9% |
| Kenneth Burley Kluttz | $847 | $322 | -62% |
| Charles Edward Miller Jr. | $1,485 | $316 | -78.7% |
| Thomas Wayne Chester | $1,243 | $301 | -75.8% |
| Betty M. Morton | $470 | $300 | -36.2% |
| Gary Paul White | $1,637 | $290 | -82.3% |
| Sunday Circle Farms, LLC | $1,616 | $290 | -82.1% |
| Z. M. Harry | $279 | $279 | 0% |
| David M. Barbee | $1,089 | $274 | -74.8% |
| Jacob W. Brandt | $435 | $265 | -39.1% |
| Matthew A. Shelley | $2,085 | $232 | -88.9% |
| P & F Farms, Inc. | $593,964 | $227 | -100% |
| Robert Scott Pender | $561 | $222 | -60.4% |
| Mark B. Hartsell | $1,762 | $208 | -88.2% |
| William W. Webb Jr. | $1,865 | $200 | -89.3% |
| Bruce Thomas Clark | $667 | $186 | -72.1% |
| Grant G. Walters | $1,360 | $157 | -88.5% |
| Carlton L. Myers | $392 | $152 | -61.2% |
| Jeffrey W. Trexler | $715 | $140 | -80.4% |
| Patricia F. Killian | $389 | $137 | -64.8% |
| David Austin Dagenhart Estate | $431 | $126 | -70.8% |
| William V. Godley Jr. | $0 | $102 | -- |
| Max Corriher | $110 | $85 | -22.7% |
| Bobby E. Trexler | $646 | $60 | -90.7% |
| Charles T. Owen | $0 | $59 | -- |
| John G. Tucker | $96 | $52 | -45.8% |
| Naomi S. Rice | $183 | $52 | -71.6% |
| Cauble Creek Vineyard, LLC | $661 | $39 | -94.1% |
| Roman O. Culbertson | $142 | $11 | -92.3% |
| Michael A. Miller | $5,005 | $0 | -100% |
| Circle D Sheep | $3,206 | $0 | -100% |
| David C. Rowland | $133 | $0 | -100% |
| David G. Walters | $4,484 | $0 | -100% |
| Don R. Safrit | $1,085 | $0 | -100% |
| Frank Patterson Farms, Inc. | $39,347 | $0 | -100% |
| John Weddington Greenhouses, LLC | $62,266 | $0 | -100% |
| Jon Beaver | $2,834 | $0 | -100% |
| Lee A. Myers | $450 | $0 | -100% |
| Robert L. Miller | $15,201 | $0 | -100% |
| Wild Turkey Farms, LLC | $1,241 | $0 | -100% |
| Bradly N. Doby | $1,485 | $0 | -100% |
| David J. Lentz | $20,066 | $0 | -100% |
| Jimmy L. Campbell | $1,100 | $0 | -100% |
| Mark Andrew Deaton | $195 | $0 | -100% |
| Marvin L. Beaver | $806 | $0 | -100% |
| Mary C. Brown | $1,265 | $0 | -100% |
| Shane Hill | $7,315 | $0 | -100% |
| Shawn Black | $2,504 | $0 | -100% |
| Morrison Farm Associates II Limit | $34,332 | $0 | -100% |
| Rockwell Farms, Inc. | $580,000 | $0 | -100% |
| Andrew Murray Bame | $1,911 | $0 | -100% |
| Don R. Yost | $5,922 | $0 | -100% |
| Frank Yost | $1,762 | $0 | -100% |
| Homer P Nagle Estate | $9,795 | $0 | -100% |
| Hunter R. Barrier | $567 | $0 | -100% |
| Kevin J. Huffman | $9,275 | $0 | -100% |
| James D. Carlton | $407 | $0 | -100% |
| Karl W. Krauss Sr. | $209 | $0 | -100% |
| Kim Starnes | $57,677 | $0 | -100% |
| Margaret R. Owen | $228 | $0 | -100% |
| Mark Mauldin | $3,432 | $0 | -100% |
| Overcash Farms & Hay Company, LLC | $696 | $0 | -100% |
| Spencer C. Lane Jr. | $558 | $0 | -100% |
| Total subsidies | $4,494,386 | $1,262,798 | -71.9% |
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