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In 2021, 99 farmers in cities within Butler County received a total of $727,371 in 192 farm subsidies, a 58.8% decrease compared to 2020, when the total was $1.8 million in 407 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paul J. Critchlow | $100,400 | $82,966 | -17.4% |
| Brian D. Miller | $157,280 | $64,021 | -59.3% |
| Reichert Farms | $80,905 | $62,013 | -23.4% |
| Marvin E. Davis | $137,882 | $57,612 | -58.2% |
| Drushel Dairy Farm | $42,314 | $38,299 | -9.5% |
| Stuart L. Thompson | $0 | $37,316 | -- |
| Mark O. Brantner | $69,363 | $36,087 | -48% |
| J R Twentier Farms | $26,052 | $24,938 | -4.3% |
| John D. Ambrose | $47,686 | $20,155 | -57.7% |
| Aiken Farms | $50,242 | $19,737 | -60.7% |
| Michael Barnhart | $39,934 | $18,064 | -54.8% |
| Ro-Ann Haven Farm LP | $19,188 | $17,293 | -9.9% |
| Jay H. Reno | $23,986 | $16,060 | -33% |
| Clover Lane Farm | $102,334 | $14,326 | -86% |
| Brad T. Dressen | $12,974 | $14,264 | 9.9% |
| Moser Farm Dairy | $19,734 | $10,439 | -47.1% |
| James L. Kennedy | $9,629 | $9,629 | 0% |
| Norman H. Graham | $16,965 | $8,692 | -48.8% |
| Marburger Farm Dairy, Inc. | $29,205 | $8,157 | -72.1% |
| Braden T. Elkin | $27,230 | $7,667 | -71.8% |
| Earl D. Hunt | $24,750 | $7,416 | -70% |
| Robert E. Burr | $20,542 | $6,726 | -67.3% |
| David Cox | $13,295 | $6,612 | -50.3% |
| Tom W. Urmson Jr. | $12,940 | $6,608 | -48.9% |
| Bryan Farms, LLC | $21,536 | $6,506 | -69.8% |
| Mark Bartley | $9,349 | $6,278 | -32.8% |
| Victor J Bauldoff JR | $15,018 | $5,672 | -62.2% |
| Mark Marshall | $16,420 | $5,584 | -66% |
| Robert Jesteadt | $11,754 | $5,403 | -54% |
| Bernadette L. Conerty | $5,331 | $5,331 | 0% |
| Kenneth L. Moniot | $15,211 | $5,002 | -67.1% |
| Betty Lee Brown | $6,074 | $4,753 | -21.7% |
| Ann Farinelli | $4,569 | $4,569 | 0% |
| John M. Allen Jr. | $18,785 | $3,963 | -78.9% |
| Dale E. Lyons | $13,079 | $3,912 | -70.1% |
| Charles Wilson | $6,593 | $3,812 | -42.2% |
| Luke A. Fritz | $8,237 | $3,785 | -54% |
| Eugene A. Cooper | $8,439 | $3,771 | -55.3% |
| Robert L. Doverspike | $3,436 | $3,436 | 0% |
| Vettori Limited Partnership | $11,922 | $3,391 | -71.6% |
| Kenneth L. Rasp | $8,797 | $3,021 | -65.7% |
| George Schoedel | $0 | $2,895 | -- |
| John W. Geibel | $9,654 | $2,575 | -73.3% |
| June R. Arner | $11,802 | $2,361 | -80% |
| Kenneth McAnallen | $7,382 | $2,218 | -70% |
| Robert E. Burr | $0 | $2,117 | -- |
| Victor G. Cheeseman | $7,259 | $2,033 | -72% |
| Mark Rutledge | $1,548 | $1,944 | 25.6% |
| Jonathan Pratt | $6,942 | $1,929 | -72.2% |
| Glenn F. Griffin | $3,465 | $1,913 | -44.8% |
| Barry E. Leicher Jr. | $1,781 | $1,781 | 0% |
| David J Zattiero | $8,218 | $1,620 | -80.3% |
| Craig Steeb | $10,581 | $1,561 | -85.2% |
| Larry Werner | $1,550 | $1,430 | -7.7% |
| Eugene A. Bergbigler | $13,908 | $1,411 | -89.9% |
| Flinner Farms and Implements, LLC | $1,182 | $1,279 | 8.2% |
| Elton I. Scheidemantle | $1,523 | $1,269 | -16.7% |
| Randall Davison | $1,727 | $1,204 | -30.3% |
| Kathleen M. Dehaven | $1,800 | $1,201 | -33.3% |
| Alvin L. Vogel | $5,751 | $1,111 | -80.7% |
| Robert K. Moniot | $1,347 | $1,039 | -22.9% |
| Jeffery A. Michel Sr. | $2,228 | $1,012 | -54.6% |
| Sally a Barber | $2,380 | $998 | -58.1% |
| Kory C. Jones | $1,844 | $957 | -48.1% |
| Robert P. Geibel | $7,523 | $871 | -88.4% |
| Lawrence H. Lang | $5,165 | $861 | -83.3% |
| Gary Casper | $860 | $860 | 0% |
| Donald Ragan | $6,719 | $820 | -87.8% |
| Leslie E. Hall | $3,884 | $769 | -80.2% |
| Gordon L. Marburger | $2,868 | $666 | -76.8% |
| Jeffrey S. Morrison | $920 | $666 | -27.6% |
| Larry E. McCall | $820 | $652 | -20.5% |
| Jeremy R. Ritzert | $1,900 | $630 | -66.8% |
| James Love | $3,311 | $622 | -81.2% |
| William C. Duncan | $2,223 | $616 | -72.3% |
| Harold F. Kennedy | $2,244 | $602 | -73.2% |
| John H. Damico Jr. | $3,764 | $576 | -84.7% |
| Soergel Family Cattle, LLC | $2,574 | $549 | -78.7% |
| Ronald L. Double | $2,453 | $548 | -77.7% |
| Sally A. Bayuk | $498 | $498 | 0% |
| Douglas Yard | $2,416 | $485 | -79.9% |
| Frederick Baehr III | $0 | $469 | -- |
| Roy Knauf | $1,350 | $442 | -67.3% |
| Adam Lee Tejchman | $1,699 | $439 | -74.2% |
| George T. McQuiston Jr. | $1,584 | $438 | -72.3% |
| William R. Martin | $2,266 | $421 | -81.4% |
| Lance D. Kauf | $2,320 | $420 | -81.9% |
| Robert Bishop | $1,320 | $407 | -69.2% |
| George T. McQuiston Sr. | $1,915 | $341 | -82.2% |
| Daniel R. Steffy | $395 | $307 | -22.3% |
| Dale W. Kennedy | $1,133 | $301 | -73.4% |
| Ryan M Colteryahn | $3,453 | $276 | -92% |
| Patrick Powers | $3,120 | $235 | -92.5% |
| Frank E Bratkovich JR | $159 | $159 | 0% |
| Raylene Osborne | $652 | $114 | -82.5% |
| Donna S. Zang | $85 | $85 | 0% |
| Karen S. Eshenbaugh | $0 | $41 | -- |
| Barry Leicher Sr. | $22 | $22 | 0% |
| Richard A. Day | $760 | $19 | -97.5% |
| James Coyle | $436 | $0 | -100% |
| Lewis E. Stoughton | $7,210 | $0 | -100% |
| Patricia E. Bell | $6,013 | $0 | -100% |
| Travis Oesterling | $427 | $0 | -100% |
| Charles W. Rasp Jr. | $6,502 | $0 | -100% |
| Jean Kummer | $188 | $0 | -100% |
| Louis Boyle | $2,041 | $0 | -100% |
| Rosalyn Kummer | $375 | $0 | -100% |
| James L. Hoffman | $8,500 | $0 | -100% |
| Jeffrey A. Linton | $990 | $0 | -100% |
| Kenneth J. Peffer | $226 | $0 | -100% |
| Earl A. Bailey | $3,426 | $0 | -100% |
| Christopher H. Barth | $17,571 | $0 | -100% |
| Santas Heritage Farm, LLC | $2,070 | $0 | -100% |
| Jon L. Scheidemantle | $1,764 | $0 | -100% |
| Duwayne Flinner | $737 | $0 | -100% |
| James T. Crighton | $2,377 | $0 | -100% |
| Kevin E Colteryahn | $533 | $0 | -100% |
| Ted W. Callen | $8,748 | $0 | -100% |
| Albert Moletz | $3,198 | $0 | -100% |
| Freedom Farms, LLC | $60,110 | $0 | -100% |
| Fritz Farm | $4,710 | $0 | -100% |
| Harvest Valley Farms, Inc. | $74,297 | $0 | -100% |
| Charles D. Eshenbaugh | $41 | $0 | -100% |
| David L. Brown | $462 | $0 | -100% |
| Dusten K Clark | $4,358 | $0 | -100% |
| Robert L. Hall | $233 | $0 | -100% |
| Spring Valley Gardens, LLC | $27,468 | $0 | -100% |
| J. E. Mussig Greenhouses, Inc. | $52,830 | $0 | -100% |
| Mary Ann Brenckle | $20,204 | $0 | -100% |
| Total subsidies | $1,763,672 | $727,371 | -58.8% |
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