lolagranola’s Recent Comments

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  who are the real winners in the farm subsidy game?

  One thing we haven't addressed in discussing the farm subsidy issue is who the real winners are.  Yes, the 'rich' farmers, the corporate owned farmers are the winners, but take that one step further.  The BANKS are the real winners in the subsidy game.  How many hundreds of thousands or millions of dollars are tied up in big operations, ones who milk thousands of cows or till thousands of acres?  In the Get Big or Get Out era banks were more than willing to lend anyone a few hundred thousand to follow the Get Big dream.  With farm prices consistently low, how are the farmers supposed to pay back that money?  Without subsidies to help pay the mortgage, many banks would be the proud owners of many farms.  And if the current farmer couldn't make a go of it, who in their right mind would buy it?  To piece it off and sell it would bring pennies on the dollar.  And the banks would be bankrupt.

  To amazingdrx, the farm cooperative you speak of as part of this farm market movement is nothing new.  I belong to a creamery cooperative started 40 years ago to help farmers pool their resources and bring their product (in my case, cheese) to market.  And guess what?  The creamery is rife with nepotism, finacial abuse, secrecy and poor decision making.  Creating 'new' cooperatives to replace the old will only find the 'new' cooperatives, in 20-40 years, in the same situation as the old ones are in now.

  I see the only way for farmers to remain financially viable is relaxing the regulations.  I know, I know, everyone talks about food safety, but what standards are there now?  Pouring more money into a broken system won't fix it.  Let the farmers who want a stab at financial independence to do it.  Let consumers who have educated themselves on the benefits, and risks, of buying food directly off the farm have the authority to do so.  I'm not saying that everyone needs to do this.  Food safety in the commercial sector is extremely important, but for those farmers out there, like me, who want desperately to get off the government teat and make a respectable living, let us do it!On The Farm Bill debate does hinge on subsidies posted 2 years ago 6 Responses

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  but these are the changes I'd like to see...

  As one of the small farmers (I milk 30 cows) struggling to make ends meet, I'd like to see the farm bill relax many of the law that make it impossible for farmers my size to make any money.  The farm bill concentrates on subsidies, and as a farmer, I'll tell you we don't want subsidies, we want a fair price for our products.  But the government has made selling milk directly from the cow to the customer illegal.  They have made it illegal for me to butcher my own animal and sell it to my neighbor.  I can't make kefir, cheese, or yogurt in my kitchen to sell to my neighbor.   THESE are the reasons so many farmers grow commodity crops!  If direct farm-to-consumer commerce was unregulated, like it used to be, I'd bet you'd see more farmers producing food for their local area.  And as farmers make THEIR OWN money, they'll invest in conservation programs, because they want to ensure a quality product, because that's what sells.

  The farm bill IS all about subsidies, but to make REAL change, LASTING change, the government has to stop regulating the farmers to death!On The Farm Bill debate does hinge on subsidies posted 2 years ago 6 Responses