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In 2021, 75 farmers in cities within Oliver County received a total of $1.6 million in 219 farm subsidies, a 31% decrease compared to 2020, when the total was $2.3 million in 276 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Square Butte Farm | $625,718 | $443,630 | -29.1% |
| Wade Staigle | $142,287 | $117,373 | -17.5% |
| Alan Walter Schwalbe | $129,278 | $66,139 | -48.8% |
| Ryan J. Weber | $68,846 | $60,389 | -12.3% |
| Todd M Orgaard | $73,827 | $55,783 | -24.4% |
| William Leonard Retterath | $117,108 | $53,032 | -54.7% |
| Ethan John Staigle | $41,884 | $48,885 | 16.7% |
| Daniel Wade Staigle | $35,011 | $45,764 | 30.7% |
| Mikael Schmidt | $72,107 | $42,583 | -40.9% |
| Gilbert Geiger | $43,920 | $42,405 | -3.4% |
| Drew Michael Erhardt | $24,224 | $40,243 | 66.1% |
| Joey M. Nagel | $42,505 | $38,476 | -9.5% |
| Jerry Mark Nagel | $42,466 | $38,427 | -9.5% |
| Dale Barth | $62,903 | $36,894 | -41.3% |
| Eugene Paul Yantzer | $36,610 | $33,260 | -9.2% |
| Rodney Meckle | $48,001 | $33,214 | -30.8% |
| Paul A. Brown | $45,854 | $29,673 | -35.3% |
| Nathan Lowell Henke | $50,727 | $28,077 | -44.7% |
| Leland Gullickson | $88,925 | $27,232 | -69.4% |
| Stephen Hovey | $46,824 | $26,671 | -43% |
| Steven R. Fricke | $35,559 | $25,391 | -28.6% |
| James Folk | $18,764 | $24,690 | 31.6% |
| Bradley Meckle | $42,058 | $23,334 | -44.5% |
| Howard Bubel | $52,804 | $14,562 | -72.4% |
| Gordon Jensen | $13,285 | $12,426 | -6.5% |
| Charles Alderin | $19,658 | $12,009 | -38.9% |
| Clark Pochant | $19,291 | $11,880 | -38.4% |
| Rick Schmidt | $24,746 | $11,817 | -52.2% |
| Kirk Wade Bonsness | $10,604 | $9,903 | -6.6% |
| Kyle Miller | $10,065 | $9,510 | -5.5% |
| Wesley Jensen | $8,008 | $9,088 | 13.5% |
| Kelan Anthony Brown | $9,975 | $9,037 | -9.4% |
| Timothy Frederick | $1,540 | $8,436 | 447.8% |
| Brian Allen Dresser | $8,008 | $8,313 | 3.8% |
| Randall Ray Schmidt | $8,643 | $7,420 | -14.2% |
| Haag Brothers Partnership | $13,011 | $7,226 | -44.5% |
| Verlyn Starck | $10,863 | $6,253 | -42.4% |
| Dustin Henke | $8,558 | $5,785 | -32.4% |
| Sandra Wetzstein | $5,253 | $5,579 | 6.2% |
| Dwaine Helmers | $6,885 | $5,499 | -20.1% |
| Backer Bees | $33,233 | $5,456 | -83.6% |
| Bauer Ranch, Inc. | $11,690 | $5,266 | -55% |
| Leslie Gress | $4,826 | $5,225 | 8.3% |
| Kenneth J. Schmidt | $8,364 | $5,134 | -38.6% |
| Curtiss R. Eng | $11,968 | $4,658 | -61.1% |
| John Bobb Jr. | $6,907 | $4,558 | -34% |
| Judith Walters | $4,275 | $4,275 | 0% |
| Grealing Starck | $8,401 | $3,604 | -57.1% |
| MMCS VI, LLP | $3,594 | $3,594 | 0% |
| Allen Karlin | $4,306 | $3,053 | -29.1% |
| Henry J. Maertens | $3,557 | $2,674 | -24.8% |
| Keith Lange | $3,925 | $2,577 | -34.3% |
| Kenneth Mark Brandt | $13,551 | $2,445 | -82% |
| Steve Schmidt | $2,782 | $2,203 | -20.8% |
| Justin Paul Brown | $10,914 | $2,160 | -80.2% |
| Teri Schulte | $894 | $2,047 | 129% |
| David O. Berger | $1,833 | $1,987 | 8.4% |
| Richard A. Schwalbe | $0 | $1,583 | -- |
| Marlow Pfaff | $1,091 | $1,270 | 16.4% |
| Dallas Morast | $4,356 | $1,242 | -71.5% |
| Duane Walsh | $1,206 | $1,206 | 0% |
| Grace Farms | $0 | $1,174 | -- |
| Lynn E. Henke | $7,381 | $1,146 | -84.5% |
| John Bubel | $1,405 | $830 | -40.9% |
| Wayne A. Schaner | $967 | $760 | -21.4% |
| Elizabeth C. Schaner | $742 | $738 | -0.5% |
| Johnnie Giesen | $0 | $728 | -- |
| Keith Erhardt | $641 | $542 | -15.4% |
| Duane E. Hagen | $473 | $473 | 0% |
| Carter Jerome Berg | $0 | $319 | -- |
| Lee Benjamin | $231 | $226 | -2.2% |
| Howard Bieber | $279 | $147 | -47.3% |
| Myron Erhardt | $275 | $138 | -49.8% |
| Wallace D. Olander | $114 | $15 | -86.8% |
| Luella Isaak | $502 | $9 | -98.2% |
| Callen Richard Clarys | $3,740 | $0 | -100% |
| Garrett Schwalbe | $5,659 | $0 | -100% |
| Security First Bank of ND | $3,638 | $0 | -100% |
| Shae Brown | $32 | $0 | -100% |
| Total subsidies | $2,334,355 | $1,609,770 | -31% |
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