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In 2021, 74 farmers in cities within Kershaw County received a total of $593,278 in 110 farm subsidies, a 74.5% decrease compared to 2020, when the total was $2.3 million in 171 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Belger Farms Company, Inc. | $141,905 | $69,548 | -51% |
| Jessie Clark Rast Sr. | $102,582 | $57,611 | -43.8% |
| Agent South Farm Credit Aca | $130,310 | $57,446 | -55.9% |
| Jeremy Jones | $0 | $50,325 | -- |
| Donnan, Inc. | $0 | $42,551 | -- |
| Richard W. Knight | $0 | $38,880 | -- |
| Denton Farms, Inc. | $0 | $28,135 | -- |
| William Frank Brown | $0 | $27,896 | -- |
| ABB Farms, LLC | $39,113 | $23,874 | -39% |
| Yancey D. Stephens Jr. | $0 | $19,901 | -- |
| W. L. Clyburn | $19,115 | $15,490 | -19% |
| Jason Hackworth | $0 | $13,599 | -- |
| William Richard Brown | $0 | $11,317 | -- |
| Ralph and Lavaughn Mccaskill Family Trust | $0 | $10,685 | -- |
| Frank G. McLeod Jr. | $24,443 | $10,468 | -57.2% |
| Palmetto Land & Timber of Camden, LLC | $0 | $10,258 | -- |
| Graham Mclean Marsh | $811 | $9,382 | 1,056.8% |
| Tammy P. Frost | $0 | $8,925 | -- |
| Ryan Bowers | $24,342 | $8,547 | -64.9% |
| Dewey Neil Boykin | $42,382 | $7,384 | -82.6% |
| Knight Farms, LLC | $11,236 | $5,498 | -51.1% |
| Johnny W. Outlaw Jr. | $28,409 | $5,191 | -81.7% |
| Roy M. Gaskins | $7,165 | $4,639 | -35.3% |
| Donnie Aaron Tucker Estate | $0 | $4,106 | -- |
| Thomas E. Davis | $4,095 | $4,099 | 0.1% |
| Larry V. Johnson | $32,691 | $3,545 | -89.2% |
| Shane E. Fountain | $22,223 | $3,376 | -84.8% |
| Angela B. Rickard | $0 | $2,935 | -- |
| Braddock Farms, LLC | $10,199 | $2,805 | -72.5% |
| Derhonda S Ross | $2,437 | $2,437 | 0% |
| Roger D. Brock | $2,331 | $2,331 | 0% |
| Jack R. Corbett | $3,757 | $2,198 | -41.5% |
| Judie S. Shiver | $2,057 | $2,057 | 0% |
| Paul L. Huckabee Jr. | $2,538 | $1,995 | -21.4% |
| Anthony N. Messier | $1,700 | $1,707 | 0.4% |
| William G. Tolbert Jr. | $6,726 | $1,609 | -76.1% |
| Wade Marion Stokes | $3,592 | $1,590 | -55.7% |
| William Mark Stokes | $3,171 | $1,590 | -49.9% |
| Lynnwood H Horton | $5,250 | $1,532 | -70.8% |
| Vincent D. Smith | $7,232 | $1,382 | -80.9% |
| Victor C. McLeod Jr. | $1,149 | $1,149 | 0% |
| Upper Ponds Holdings, LLC | $885 | $885 | 0% |
| Windy Hill Farm, LLC | $5,024 | $832 | -83.4% |
| Roy Cummings | $1,980 | $697 | -64.8% |
| Kay S. McLeod | $673 | $673 | 0% |
| Mary V. Sullivan | $1,497 | $629 | -58% |
| Caroline C. Thompson | $617 | $617 | 0% |
| Judy C. Logan | $579 | $579 | 0% |
| Harold V. Oquinn | $2,042 | $576 | -71.8% |
| Danny L. Marsh | $4,738 | $554 | -88.3% |
| Rodney Eugene Barringer | $36,356 | $535 | -98.5% |
| Larry S. Stuckey | $1,441 | $527 | -63.4% |
| Sheila W. Bracey | $3,469 | $508 | -85.4% |
| J. W. Barrett | $528 | $495 | -6.3% |
| Aimee G. McElveen | $765 | $483 | -36.9% |
| Lawrence E. Slade | $4,731 | $473 | -90% |
| Elizabeth D. Barrett | $463 | $463 | 0% |
| Benny W. Hall Jr. | $0 | $439 | -- |
| Israel J. Boone | $1,694 | $416 | -75.4% |
| Charles Larry Thomas | $0 | $305 | -- |
| Donnie C. Catoe | $1,485 | $273 | -81.6% |
| Denton Properties | $0 | $256 | -- |
| Cecil L. McCaskill Jr. | $554 | $241 | -56.5% |
| Regina A. Henson | $239 | $239 | 0% |
| William Robert Ingram | $2,808 | $228 | -91.9% |
| Billy Watkins Jr. | $215 | $215 | 0% |
| Otis Glenn Dority | $425 | $208 | -51.1% |
| Marvin J. McCaskill | $0 | $207 | -- |
| Gloria Kimble | $187 | $187 | 0% |
| Calvin L. Thaxton Jr. | $0 | $153 | -- |
| David J. Washer | $0 | $152 | -- |
| Daniel C. Baxley | $261 | $127 | -51.3% |
| Esther R. McCaskill | $458 | $57 | -87.6% |
| Kafa Timber Farms, LLC | $1,005 | $56 | -94.4% |
| Finley M. Yarbrough | $279 | $0 | -100% |
| Judy A. Jones | $450 | $0 | -100% |
| Ralph and Lavaughn Mccaskill Fami | $10,685 | $0 | -100% |
| Sandra Yarbrough | $279 | $0 | -100% |
| Wayne Boan | $172 | $0 | -100% |
| Wind in the Willows Nursery, Inc. | $9,291 | $0 | -100% |
| B's Greenhouses | $10,847 | $0 | -100% |
| James P. Dennis | $3,189 | $0 | -100% |
| Janie B. Smith | $282 | $0 | -100% |
| Jean Francois Truesdale | $5,953 | $0 | -100% |
| Prestage Farms of School, LLC | $1,500,000 | $0 | -100% |
| Terry O. McCaskill | $565 | $0 | -100% |
| Palmetto Land & Timber of Camden | $10,257 | $0 | -100% |
| Robert H Garrison JR, Inc. | $18,267 | $0 | -100% |
| Total subsidies | $2,328,596 | $593,278 | -74.5% |
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