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In 2021, 62 farmers in cities within Troup County received a total of $349,700 in 71 farm subsidies, a 15.7% decrease compared to 2020, when the total was $415,058 in 145 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Double T Hauling, LLC | $0 | $52,875 | -- |
| WB Timber, LLC | $0 | $52,875 | -- |
| David Jordan | $0 | $45,862 | -- |
| Thomas Austin Waldroup | $56,870 | $41,869 | -26.4% |
| Joel D. Keith | $21,646 | $38,189 | 76.4% |
| Iowa River Mill Race Refuge, LLC | $18,590 | $18,590 | 0% |
| Strong Logging, LLC | $0 | $15,905 | -- |
| Marvin Jones and Sons Property, Inc. | $26,239 | $6,957 | -73.5% |
| Matthew Aaron Comerford | $15,547 | $6,067 | -61% |
| Ferrell Luvern Blair | $14,333 | $5,016 | -65% |
| Laura Louise Dodson | $3,131 | $4,510 | 44% |
| Lindsey Pompey | $16,766 | $4,044 | -75.9% |
| David Ryan Arrington | $17,697 | $3,759 | -78.8% |
| Deborah Thomason | $18,555 | $3,677 | -80.2% |
| Walter L. Stewart | $5,396 | $3,534 | -34.5% |
| Rickey Luke | $3,441 | $3,441 | 0% |
| John C. Callaway Jr. | $17,014 | $3,236 | -81% |
| Devonshire Farm, Inc. | $9,846 | $3,034 | -69.2% |
| Fred Murphy Jr. | $15,006 | $2,728 | -81.8% |
| Melvin Railey | $5,973 | $2,469 | -58.7% |
| Wayne R. Snellgrove | $1,872 | $1,872 | 0% |
| Glendora Major | $5,414 | $1,567 | -71.1% |
| Marie H. Cash | $1,531 | $1,531 | 0% |
| Wilbert E. Binion | $10,809 | $1,501 | -86.1% |
| James W. Mathis | $7,986 | $1,478 | -81.5% |
| Cash Family Farms LP | $1,390 | $1,390 | 0% |
| Robert Kenneth Humphries | $6,961 | $1,352 | -80.6% |
| Nicholas L. Arnett | $9,644 | $1,346 | -86% |
| Will Oubre | $6,600 | $1,294 | -80.4% |
| Jonathan Hall | $0 | $1,206 | -- |
| Thomas Y. Busbin Jr. | $1,178 | $1,178 | 0% |
| RRC Farms, LLC | $2,308 | $1,093 | -52.6% |
| Harold E. Wisener | $4,018 | $998 | -75.2% |
| Richard Crowe | $6,497 | $994 | -84.7% |
| Pelar D Metcalf JR | $936 | $936 | 0% |
| Clarence Dean | $5,566 | $851 | -84.7% |
| Britt Fincher | $3,708 | $810 | -78.2% |
| Fred Hubbert | $4,720 | $806 | -82.9% |
| Douglas Patterson | $3,072 | $789 | -74.3% |
| Terrell Jones | $1,947 | $762 | -60.9% |
| Paul Whitten | $3,539 | $740 | -79.1% |
| Donald Eugene Hayes | $4,776 | $732 | -84.7% |
| Howard Marcus Jones | $2,563 | $707 | -72.4% |
| Ellis Cadenhead | $3,344 | $656 | -80.4% |
| Philip E. Thompson | $1,848 | $480 | -74% |
| Dorothy Harrison McKeen | $1,528 | $426 | -72.1% |
| Lowell Kissinger | $2,057 | $414 | -79.9% |
| Mark Hunt | $1,518 | $362 | -76.2% |
| Tom Schmitz | $1,984 | $360 | -81.9% |
| William Riddle | $1,672 | $357 | -78.6% |
| Kim Barber | $438 | $290 | -33.8% |
| Edward L. Boston | $627 | $256 | -59.2% |
| Rochelle Pompey | $12,428 | $255 | -97.9% |
| Stephanie Neufeld | $769 | $224 | -70.9% |
| Karen Nazarenus | $457 | $216 | -52.7% |
| Bill Hunnicutt | $0 | $201 | -- |
| Chad Norton | $0 | $201 | -- |
| Joseph M. Alford | $351 | $142 | -59.5% |
| Cheryl Hunt Smith | $10,224 | $132 | -98.7% |
| William F. Hall Jr. | $186 | $81 | -56.5% |
| Kenneth Gordon | $83 | $53 | -36.1% |
| Daniel Clark Simms | $1,539 | $24 | -98.4% |
| Earl Raymond | $126 | $0 | -100% |
| Gaynell Wingard | $1,045 | $0 | -100% |
| Mary Helen Terrell | $2,684 | $0 | -100% |
| Richard Wolfe | $4,840 | $0 | -100% |
| Traynum W. Wingard | $2,225 | $0 | -100% |
| Total subsidies | $415,058 | $349,700 | -15.7% |
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