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In 2021, 90 farmers in cities within Carter County received a total of $184,835 in 101 farm subsidies, a 72.8% decrease compared to 2020, when the total was $679,207 in 255 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ronnie Hazelwood/Watauga Valley Farms | $0 | $55,751 | -- |
| Preston Forbes | $770 | $18,073 | 2,247.1% |
| James Turbyfill | $0 | $12,707 | -- |
| Woods Brothers Farm | $24,942 | $10,171 | -59.2% |
| David Austin Goodwin | $40,331 | $9,562 | -76.3% |
| Allen D. Goodwin | $33,522 | $7,905 | -76.4% |
| Daniel L. Buckles | $15,845 | $3,708 | -76.6% |
| Taylor Brothers Farm | $21,376 | $3,676 | -82.8% |
| Raymond S. Elliott | $13,349 | $3,157 | -76.4% |
| Michael D. Nidiffer | $13,463 | $2,989 | -77.8% |
| Colbaugh Dairy | $29,803 | $2,529 | -91.5% |
| Lynn A. Ellis | $19,466 | $2,456 | -87.4% |
| Susan Bledsoe | $15,868 | $2,416 | -84.8% |
| Eloise Birchfield | $0 | $2,185 | -- |
| Dorsey Brock Pittman | $14,136 | $2,014 | -85.8% |
| Dejuane H Sheffield | $8,292 | $1,978 | -76.1% |
| Matthew L. Birchfield | $9,855 | $1,586 | -83.9% |
| James E. Carr | $5,038 | $1,583 | -68.6% |
| B H Cattle Company | $7,722 | $1,472 | -80.9% |
| Michelle Mathes | $1,311 | $1,256 | -4.2% |
| Richard Birchfield | $6,104 | $1,200 | -80.3% |
| Dale E. Williams | $4,412 | $1,128 | -74.4% |
| Richard Winters | $4,741 | $1,123 | -76.3% |
| John H. Hardin | $3,399 | $1,075 | -68.4% |
| Greta C. Frazier | $1,042 | $1,042 | 0% |
| David C. Grindstaff | $2,145 | $1,041 | -51.5% |
| Michael D. Hazelwood | $3,279 | $1,006 | -69.3% |
| Tyler Carrier | $4,536 | $976 | -78.5% |
| Jerry Keith Carr | $5,415 | $925 | -82.9% |
| Larry W. Lewis | $4,147 | $903 | -78.2% |
| Mark Forbes | $3,685 | $900 | -75.6% |
| Douglas R. Taylor | $3,242 | $893 | -72.5% |
| Mathew Dustin Jaynes | $5,823 | $854 | -85.3% |
| Mathew Douglas Jaynes | $5,845 | $847 | -85.5% |
| Andrew L. Miller | $5,929 | $824 | -86.1% |
| Johnny Ledford | $4,169 | $821 | -80.3% |
| James W. Hughes | $5,504 | $796 | -85.5% |
| Karmet E Baker | $13,560 | $777 | -94.3% |
| Freeman K. Taylor Estate | $0 | $767 | -- |
| David R. McKinney | $6,500 | $704 | -89.2% |
| Dean R. Buckles | $3,079 | $702 | -77.2% |
| Jeffery L. Chambers | $2,961 | $661 | -77.7% |
| Christina Coppolino | $0 | $660 | -- |
| Stephen H. Tolley | $2,893 | $654 | -77.4% |
| Brian F. Jack | $4,035 | $633 | -84.3% |
| Betty Gentry | $0 | $631 | -- |
| William E. Campbell | $3,340 | $605 | -81.9% |
| David E. Shell | $2,417 | $578 | -76.1% |
| Jacob William Rash | $2,816 | $565 | -79.9% |
| Ronnie J. Townson | $2,756 | $564 | -79.5% |
| Christopher Ray Williams | $2,026 | $561 | -72.3% |
| Leonard Bowers | $2,497 | $532 | -78.7% |
| Carl Lindsay Rash II | $2,597 | $529 | -79.6% |
| Clinton Hoilman | $3,312 | $526 | -84.1% |
| Robert M. Campbell | $2,530 | $506 | -80% |
| Debra Reece | $0 | $502 | -- |
| David S. Grindstaff | $2,200 | $458 | -79.2% |
| Travis C. Royston | $1,983 | $438 | -77.9% |
| Norma Jean Dyer | $1,441 | $419 | -70.9% |
| Donald R. Watkins | $1,049 | $402 | -61.7% |
| Joseph B. Hatley | $2,167 | $402 | -81.4% |
| Duane Forbes | $1,672 | $400 | -76.1% |
| Millard T Turbyfield | $1,729 | $382 | -77.9% |
| Edwin Carroll Hill | $1,595 | $382 | -76.1% |
| Harvey E. Guess | $1,631 | $381 | -76.6% |
| Charles Arnett | $3,826 | $381 | -90% |
| John W. Ellis | $15,100 | $357 | -97.6% |
| Louis J. Nemeth | $2,154 | $354 | -83.6% |
| Kenneth W. Treadway | $4,144 | $348 | -91.6% |
| Michael S. Cole | $2,158 | $346 | -84% |
| Rick Lynn Bowers | $1,340 | $346 | -74.2% |
| George Elic Grindstaff | $3,306 | $336 | -89.8% |
| Nicholas D. Holder | $1,053 | $328 | -68.9% |
| Charles D. Campbell | $2,293 | $326 | -85.8% |
| John Pendleton | $935 | $316 | -66.2% |
| George H. Campbell Jr. | $1,927 | $301 | -84.4% |
| Gary L. Brown | $3,432 | $273 | -92% |
| Lawrence T. Pierce | $1,463 | $260 | -82.2% |
| Gary Townsend | $1,260 | $248 | -80.3% |
| Brenda G. Loyd | $803 | $225 | -72% |
| Ivalee Morgan | $0 | $207 | -- |
| Ricky Deloach | $748 | $192 | -74.3% |
| Regina Johnson | $704 | $181 | -74.3% |
| Dwight J. Collins | $924 | $163 | -82.4% |
| Mark J. Larson | $408 | $161 | -60.5% |
| Melissa K. Larson | $408 | $161 | -60.5% |
| Lee Patton Arnold | $275 | $66 | -76% |
| Charles H. Allen | $1,475 | $51 | -96.5% |
| Rickie L. Ingram | $1,362 | $42 | -96.9% |
| Roger Day | $11,698 | $17 | -99.9% |
| A. E. Gentry | $2,354 | $0 | -100% |
| Blacksnake Cattle | $8,800 | $0 | -100% |
| David Grindstaff | $2,541 | $0 | -100% |
| Dwight Reece | $3,562 | $0 | -100% |
| Floyd F Drendel Trust | $3,319 | $0 | -100% |
| Freeman Taylor | $1,725 | $0 | -100% |
| Harry E. Ford | $330 | $0 | -100% |
| Johnny R. Miller | $990 | $0 | -100% |
| Larry O. Grindstaff | $220 | $0 | -100% |
| Margaret E Drendel Trustee No 1 | $3,319 | $0 | -100% |
| Matthew J. Miller | $110 | $0 | -100% |
| Michael D Ingram/Butler Plant Far | $14,741 | $0 | -100% |
| Mitchell Latham | $15,342 | $0 | -100% |
| Ronnie Hazelwood/Watauga Valley F | $89,074 | $0 | -100% |
| Steven J. Perkins | $2,035 | $0 | -100% |
| Thomas W. Jenkins | $660 | $0 | -100% |
| Timothy James Clark | $2,533 | $0 | -100% |
| William A. Shoun | $1,155 | $0 | -100% |
| Bill Birchfield | $14,909 | $0 | -100% |
| Dale McKinney | $945 | $0 | -100% |
| Jon Forbes | $23,896 | $0 | -100% |
| Mr. Billie Morgan | $610 | $0 | -100% |
| Susana E. Simerly | $1,549 | $0 | -100% |
| Total subsidies | $679,207 | $184,835 | -72.8% |
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