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In 2021, 160 farmers in cities within Oconee County received a total of $1 million in 201 farm subsidies, a 30.6% decrease compared to 2020, when the total was $1.5 million in 481 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 Oconee County, Year Over Year
| Farmer | Total Received in 2020 | Total Received in 2021 | % Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Felice Lardiere | $68,807 | $83,983 | 22.1% |
| Black Valley Farm, Inc. | $0 | $63,132 | -- |
| Hartney Brothers | $84,954 | $63,077 | -25.8% |
| Nickles Poultry & Cattle Farms, Inc. | $0 | $55,738 | -- |
| Eddie Taylor | $0 | $52,875 | -- |
| Laws Logging, Inc. | $0 | $52,875 | -- |
| Roy Carter & Sons Logging, Inc. | $0 | $52,875 | -- |
| Nathan Gambrell | $0 | $46,321 | -- |
| Neil B. McPhail | $68,680 | $46,027 | -33% |
| Matthew W. McLane | $18,689 | $42,673 | 128.3% |
| Charles Whiten | $36,039 | $31,191 | -13.5% |
| Paige McPhail | $35,973 | $26,435 | -26.5% |
| Gen 2-15b, LLC | $25,166 | $25,166 | 0% |
| Stone Farms, Inc. | $58,514 | $24,666 | -57.8% |
| Zechariah K. Massey | $36,354 | $23,433 | -35.5% |
| Bill R. Smith | $14,139 | $23,257 | 64.5% |
| Charles G. Cothran | $0 | $21,896 | -- |
| Jarrett B. Mize | $6,412 | $17,482 | 172.6% |
| Joe M. Davis | $59,150 | $17,249 | -70.8% |
| Oakway Farms, LLC | $16,804 | $13,673 | -18.6% |
| Keith Sheriff | $4,254 | $13,649 | 220.9% |
| Gen 2-15c, LLC | $11,567 | $13,100 | 13.3% |
| Gen 2-15d, LLC | $10,626 | $10,626 | 0% |
| Ronald Wade Martin | $0 | $9,055 | -- |
| Hidden Valley Farms, LLC | $0 | $8,119 | -- |
| Denver J. Powell | $34,971 | $8,067 | -76.9% |
| Hugh Franklin Ables Jr. | $24,616 | $6,261 | -74.6% |
| Issaqueena Farm, LLC | $32,138 | $6,038 | -81.2% |
| John S. Shirley Sr. | $19,232 | $5,931 | -69.2% |
| Ronald W. Martin | $45,153 | $5,622 | -87.5% |
| Kenneth E. Cain | $32,557 | $5,606 | -82.8% |
| Bradley Dickson | $10,944 | $4,879 | -55.4% |
| Justin Tyler Ables | $9,558 | $4,658 | -51.3% |
| Marion J. Powell Jr. | $21,919 | $4,568 | -79.2% |
| Diane L Letson - Letson Revocable Trust | $0 | $3,818 | -- |
| Ronnie Keaton | $10,050 | $3,780 | -62.4% |
| Malmanger Farms, Ltd. | $11,787 | $3,704 | -68.6% |
| Stacy L. Foster | $31,057 | $3,634 | -88.3% |
| Donna W. Barnhill | $0 | $3,226 | -- |
| Billy R. Watson | $16,300 | $3,105 | -81% |
| Barker Stone | $12,760 | $2,928 | -77.1% |
| Choestoea Farm, Inc. | $19,233 | $2,898 | -84.9% |
| James W. Smith | $17,190 | $2,851 | -83.4% |
| Carol Helmendach | $2,121 | $2,829 | 33.4% |
| Joshua Ray Owens | $0 | $2,789 | -- |
| Alvin Burdette | $0 | $2,760 | -- |
| Harvey W. Cole | $3,376 | $2,639 | -21.8% |
| Gibson Organic Farms, Inc. | $11,739 | $2,295 | -80.4% |
| Willow Lake Farms | $2,293 | $2,293 | 0% |
| Robert S. Moore | $2,230 | $2,230 | 0% |
| Jerry M. Powell | $21,065 | $2,203 | -89.5% |
| Emanuel A. Hyatt | $10,765 | $2,104 | -80.5% |
| Marion J. Barker | $7,076 | $2,038 | -71.2% |
| John W. Allen Jr. | $11,386 | $1,970 | -82.7% |
| Christie Gilliam | $10,259 | $1,886 | -81.6% |
| Marcengill Farms, LLC | $14,094 | $1,869 | -86.7% |
| Jed M. Stone | $21,020 | $1,826 | -91.3% |
| Deryl Keese | $11,867 | $1,811 | -84.7% |
| Carol L. Hendrix | $17,923 | $1,760 | -90.2% |
| Garnet E. Zeagler | $1,754 | $1,754 | 0% |
| Jeff N. Sparkman | $7,387 | $1,749 | -76.3% |
| Donald Seitz | $7,411 | $1,527 | -79.4% |
| George W. Mathis | $5,078 | $1,490 | -70.7% |
| Richard Marcengill | $6,885 | $1,450 | -78.9% |
| Charles M. Andrews | $0 | $1,395 | -- |
| Larry E. Cantrell | $8,630 | $1,382 | -84% |
| Patrick S. Williams | $6,358 | $1,332 | -79.1% |
| Michael C. King | $6,843 | $1,313 | -80.8% |
| The Carol Ann Martin Trust | $1,294 | $1,294 | 0% |
| David Michael Oliver | $6,065 | $1,291 | -78.7% |
| Seth Waldroup | $17,068 | $1,224 | -92.8% |
| Thee Cornerstone Farm, LLC | $8,296 | $1,222 | -85.3% |
| Ricky Cummings | $7,026 | $1,217 | -82.7% |
| Joseph Michael Johnson | $7,765 | $1,213 | -84.4% |
| Raymond Loudermilk | $5,038 | $1,141 | -77.4% |
| William Mark Holbrooks | $8,489 | $1,134 | -86.6% |
| James H. Myers Jr. | $7,290 | $1,128 | -84.5% |
| James H. Morris Sr. | $5,859 | $1,107 | -81.1% |
| Debra J. Conway | $1,098 | $1,098 | 0% |
| James Harold Reid Jr. | $7,374 | $1,081 | -85.3% |
| Robert R. Dukeman | $2,606 | $1,048 | -59.8% |
| Donald R. Fowler | $11,803 | $1,032 | -91.3% |
| John M. Powell | $2,531 | $1,022 | -59.6% |
| Jerry A. Richardson | $4,655 | $1,009 | -78.3% |
| Sammy Kaye Owen | $5,426 | $947 | -82.5% |
| Michael Lane Turner | $5,849 | $932 | -84.1% |
| Bobby J. Holbrooks | $4,431 | $923 | -79.2% |
| Joe Jackson Arve | $4,369 | $917 | -79% |
| Gary G. Dickard | $6,315 | $904 | -85.7% |
| Bruce Alan Wilson | $6,053 | $861 | -85.8% |
| Gabe Farm, LLC | $3,197 | $851 | -73.4% |
| Phillip L. Bearden | $9,499 | $830 | -91.3% |
| Stanley Sheriff | $2,833 | $820 | -71.1% |
| Marguerite W Andrews Estate | $0 | $808 | -- |
| Jacob Samuel Brooks | $3,014 | $798 | -73.5% |
| Roland Lee Rayburn | $3,313 | $787 | -76.2% |
| Gen 2-15e, LLC | $7,954 | $775 | -90.3% |
| James Derrill Ables | $3,179 | $765 | -75.9% |
| James Scott Williams Jr. | $4,412 | $740 | -83.2% |
| Larry Berridge | $0 | $733 | -- |
| Elijah Gambrell | $5,480 | $728 | -86.7% |
| William A. Smith | $3,146 | $706 | -77.6% |
| Ginger H. Powell | $0 | $682 | -- |
| Myron Gibson | $5,398 | $616 | -88.6% |
| Brent H. Veronee | $597 | $613 | 2.7% |
| Robyn M. Massey | $3,369 | $598 | -82.2% |
| Lucas Watts | $2,915 | $592 | -79.7% |
| Roger Michael Head II | $1,265 | $592 | -53.2% |
| Jared C. Lowery | $1,815 | $559 | -69.2% |
| Diana K. Flynn | $1,241 | $556 | -55.2% |
| Brian W. Rikard | $2,851 | $550 | -80.7% |
| Sabrina S. Moe | $2,270 | $542 | -76.1% |
| Mary Olive Mew | $1,600 | $540 | -66.3% |
| Palmer P. Gourdin | $0 | $531 | -- |
| Tony Smith | $2,310 | $524 | -77.3% |
| Lee S. Keese | $4,864 | $504 | -89.6% |
| Green Hill Farm, LLC | $1,155 | $481 | -58.4% |
| Frank L. Bibb | $1,969 | $467 | -76.3% |
| Stella S. Mooney | $2,269 | $467 | -79.4% |
| Jeffrey D. Grogan | $1,741 | $457 | -73.8% |
| Matthew Newton | $3,035 | $456 | -85% |
| Joseph Anthony Black | $1,967 | $445 | -77.4% |
| Charles M. Andrews III | $0 | $441 | -- |
| Bruce L. Bordelon Jr. | $729 | $417 | -42.8% |
| Billy Adams | $3,866 | $415 | -89.3% |
| Eleanor Faye W. Miller | $391 | $391 | 0% |
| Nancy Tilley | $390 | $390 | 0% |
| Harry M. Wood | $3,891 | $387 | -90.1% |
| Jonas S. Crooks | $3,897 | $374 | -90.4% |
| Dean Swafford | $2,295 | $349 | -84.8% |
| James Mark Lyles | $1,375 | $339 | -75.3% |
| Morris R-Janet N Keranen Rev Trus | $0 | $315 | -- |
| Thomas Doyle | $1,309 | $294 | -77.5% |
| David Pepper | $1,453 | $284 | -80.5% |
| Peter Bevilacqua | $1,160 | $282 | -75.7% |
| Roy Edward Carter | $528 | $276 | -47.7% |
| John T. Crane | $594 | $270 | -54.5% |
| Gary T. Duncan | $3,386 | $266 | -92.1% |
| Alton K. Williams | $2,161 | $263 | -87.8% |
| DeWitt Mize | $2,329 | $242 | -89.6% |
| Steven Douglas Carroll | $1,859 | $242 | -87% |
| Wayne H. Orr | $2,040 | $224 | -89% |
| William S. Staggers | $1,276 | $218 | -82.9% |
| Thornton B. Ables III | $1,541 | $207 | -86.6% |
| William E. Cureton | $1,318 | $188 | -85.7% |
| Larry A. Dellinger | $1,379 | $172 | -87.5% |
| Luther Pete Powell Jr. | $841 | $159 | -81.1% |
| Michael R. Loudermilk | $1,079 | $159 | -85.3% |
| Johnny Allen Lay | $1,620 | $146 | -91% |
| Donald E. Neal | $1,257 | $121 | -90.4% |
| Sherry G. Abbott | $502 | $117 | -76.7% |
| Roger L. Haulbrook Sr. | $583 | $104 | -82.2% |
| Kathleen M. Arisman | $205 | $102 | -50.2% |
| Harry L. Hunter Sr. | $799 | $100 | -87.5% |
| Jacqueline Sequoia | $1,518 | $100 | -93.4% |
| Brian G. Marshall | $627 | $90 | -85.6% |
| Basil Marcengill | $650 | $86 | -86.8% |
| John S. Shirley Jr. | $159 | $78 | -50.9% |
| Thomas M. Gantt | $132 | $69 | -47.7% |
| Deborah Webster | $14,171 | $34 | -99.8% |
| Diane L Letson - Letson Revocable | $3,694 | $0 | -100% |
| Don Davis | $195 | $0 | -100% |
| Benjamin Potts | $65 | $0 | -100% |
| Carol J. Corkwell | $211 | $0 | -100% |
| Dewey H. Swaney Jr. | $770 | $0 | -100% |
| Dorothy Ann Mahanay Estate | $9,193 | $0 | -100% |
| J & L Farms, LLC | $3,501 | $0 | -100% |
| Jack William McLane | $443 | $0 | -100% |
| Jon James Countess | $580 | $0 | -100% |
| Mac Alan Prater | $8,004 | $0 | -100% |
| Nancy N. Brown | $754 | $0 | -100% |
| Ora Property Holdings, Inc. | $583 | $0 | -100% |
| Stassen Thompson | $706 | $0 | -100% |
| Zackary O. R. Walters | $1,375 | $0 | -100% |
| Doris D. Galloway | $2,905 | $0 | -100% |
| Gregory W. Fowler | $539 | $0 | -100% |
| Karl F. Pittard | $73 | $0 | -100% |
| Keevin E Moore | $6,600 | $0 | -100% |
| Marguerite Andrews | $5,166 | $0 | -100% |
| Catherine Lee | $316 | $0 | -100% |
| Cristiana G Calderan Bell | $2,772 | $0 | -100% |
| Natural Farms of the Carolinas LL | $17,887 | $0 | -100% |
| Annette H. Black | $660 | $0 | -100% |
| Carolyn G. Martin | $6,019 | $0 | -100% |
| Crawford M. Keese | $2,135 | $0 | -100% |
| Cynthia J. Butts | $2,052 | $0 | -100% |
| Donnie Crooks | $1,430 | $0 | -100% |
| Richard N. Grant | $124 | $0 | -100% |
| Roger Michael Head | $1,584 | $0 | -100% |
| Steve Laplante | $422 | $0 | -100% |
| Total subsidies | $1,472,579 | $1,021,410 | -30.6% |
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