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In 2021, 92 farmers in cities within Marlboro County received a total of $2.6 million in 154 farm subsidies, a 60.2% decrease compared to 2020, when the total was $6.6 million in 309 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Calhoun Farms | $1,008,928 | $455,594 | -54.8% |
| Rhett Covington Farms | $730,582 | $197,294 | -73% |
| Frank & Cheryle Rogers | $320,077 | $195,298 | -39% |
| Pat and Blake Rogers Farms | $355,739 | $160,376 | -54.9% |
| Allan Mcdonald J. Farms | $450,193 | $141,469 | -68.6% |
| William C. Covington Jr. | $437,669 | $141,285 | -67.7% |
| Alan Gray Burroughs | $297,294 | $140,493 | -52.7% |
| Oneal Planting Company | $285,546 | $138,957 | -51.3% |
| Richard & Jane Rogers Farm | $329,407 | $115,638 | -64.9% |
| First Citizens Bank | $119,562 | $82,036 | -31.4% |
| William Andrew Burroughs | $93,110 | $81,637 | -12.3% |
| Joshua D Otuel | $181,719 | $73,054 | -59.8% |
| Douglas H & Margaret H Newton | $202,620 | $58,969 | -70.9% |
| JMH Farms, LLC | $66,927 | $57,723 | -13.8% |
| Donald Jeffrey Quick | $141,480 | $57,601 | -59.3% |
| Duncan E. Ayers | $58,308 | $54,864 | -5.9% |
| Marlboro Tobacco Farms, LLC | $117,096 | $45,725 | -61% |
| R & W Farms | $127,793 | $37,743 | -70.5% |
| L Evans Enterprises, LLC | $0 | $36,774 | -- |
| Joseph Hunsucker | $49,673 | $31,625 | -36.3% |
| Robert A. Newton | $79,232 | $30,716 | -61.2% |
| The Promise Land Stillwell Farms | $163,415 | $26,621 | -83.7% |
| Francis M. Hinson III | $85,186 | $24,170 | -71.6% |
| John Mcinnis Farms, Inc. | $156,976 | $24,154 | -84.6% |
| William Andrew Burroughs Jr. | $73,169 | $22,977 | -68.6% |
| Evalyn T Otuel | $19,014 | $21,482 | 13% |
| Joshua S. Branch | $24,439 | $19,585 | -19.9% |
| Matthew Duncan Ayers | $0 | $15,949 | -- |
| John Covington Farms | $31,012 | $13,748 | -55.7% |
| Charles M. Rogers | $11,184 | $13,516 | 20.9% |
| Mary Alice M. Burroughs | $21,889 | $13,364 | -38.9% |
| Ronald W. Quick | $29,402 | $11,214 | -61.9% |
| Miriam C. Lee | $23,009 | $10,960 | -52.4% |
| Florence County Farm Service Agency | $0 | $9,660 | -- |
| McLaurin Lee Quick | $26,089 | $8,600 | -67% |
| W Melvin Carabo | $4,572 | $4,572 | 0% |
| James E. Bostic Jr. | $0 | $4,504 | -- |
| Joseph Douglas Hinson | $16,745 | $4,204 | -74.9% |
| Smith Farms | $42,525 | $3,704 | -91.3% |
| Charles A. Oneal | $3,188 | $3,188 | 0% |
| Steve C. Blackmon | $18,523 | $2,909 | -84.3% |
| Lynn J. McColl | $9,875 | $2,421 | -75.5% |
| Jennings W. Dudley | $2,382 | $2,382 | 0% |
| JKA Farms, LLC | $3,933 | $2,278 | -42.1% |
| Phillip M. Ward | $2,139 | $2,139 | 0% |
| David D. Newton Jr. | $0 | $1,760 | -- |
| Jennings Gerald Owens Estate | $0 | $1,716 | -- |
| Bel-Acres, Inc. | $5,025 | $1,468 | -70.8% |
| James A. Collins | $9,007 | $1,432 | -84.1% |
| Laurie M. Norton | $3,259 | $1,432 | -56.1% |
| Eunice C. Dudley | $1,300 | $1,300 | 0% |
| E. M. Gordon | $8,588 | $1,145 | -86.7% |
| Franklin D. Greene | $149 | $1,045 | 601.3% |
| Henry F. McLaurin Jr. | $1,557 | $1,020 | -34.5% |
| Edward M. Heustess | $1,290 | $979 | -24.1% |
| Rogers Creek Farm, LLC | $1,485 | $956 | -35.6% |
| Gladys Quick | $5,672 | $954 | -83.2% |
| Thomas Aubrey Babb | $1,008 | $904 | -10.3% |
| James D. Bryant | $1,620 | $841 | -48.1% |
| Wesley P. Branch Sr. | $0 | $770 | -- |
| Rebecca A. McArthur | $6,325 | $743 | -88.3% |
| Harold Whittaker | $3,242 | $728 | -77.5% |
| John F. McLaurin III | $2,803 | $664 | -76.3% |
| Jack F. McCune | $1,116 | $635 | -43.1% |
| Alex M Cottingham and Elizabeth Anne Cottingham Re | $0 | $617 | -- |
| Daniel M. Clyburn | $482 | $482 | 0% |
| Lucy B. McQueen | $435 | $435 | 0% |
| Henrietta S. McInnis | $420 | $420 | 0% |
| Wade R. Crow | $0 | $418 | -- |
| William J. Heustess | $573 | $410 | -28.4% |
| James F. Stubbs | $2,731 | $392 | -85.6% |
| Glenn Blumenthal Manning Jr. | $858 | $367 | -57.2% |
| Charles E. McDuffie | $649 | $342 | -47.3% |
| Weldon Bruce Chavis | $759 | $338 | -55.5% |
| Rosalie Steele | $0 | $312 | -- |
| Dexe S Bostick | $500 | $300 | -40% |
| Frazier Farms, LLC | $736 | $298 | -59.5% |
| Jimmy L. McColl | $938 | $266 | -71.6% |
| William Ridges | $0 | $220 | -- |
| Barbara R. Bullard | $0 | $215 | -- |
| John M. Jackson III | $0 | $210 | -- |
| Martha L. McQuage | $210 | $210 | 0% |
| Charles R. English | $155 | $155 | 0% |
| Evie Hope Newton Norton | $0 | $121 | -- |
| James N. McQueen | $0 | $77 | -- |
| Anna L. Griffin | $209 | $71 | -66% |
| Kenneth G. Rouse | $0 | $67 | -- |
| Donald A. Evans | $0 | $64 | -- |
| June C. Evans | $0 | $64 | -- |
| M & F Pegues, LLC | $0 | $48 | -- |
| Tammy C. Quick | $0 | $16 | -- |
| Margaret Rene Pegues Kinney Grandchildrens Trust | $0 | $12 | -- |
| Brightsville Cotton Company | $101,523 | $0 | -100% |
| C Douglas Otuel | $96 | $0 | -100% |
| Capher, LLC | $284 | $0 | -100% |
| Frank & Cheryle Rogers | $199,747 | $0 | -100% |
| Jeffrey A. Newton | $14,328 | $0 | -100% |
| John R. Nobles | $530 | $0 | -100% |
| Kenneth G. Rouse | $476 | $0 | -100% |
| Popz USA, LLC | $375 | $0 | -100% |
| Blue Wing Plantation, LLC | $2,080 | $0 | -100% |
| Freddy C. Webster | $1,762 | $0 | -100% |
| Jim Sanders | $1,765 | $0 | -100% |
| Alex M Cottingham and Elizabeth a | $1,355 | $0 | -100% |
| Floyd Farms | $4,578 | $0 | -100% |
| Marcella R. Bryant | $237 | $0 | -100% |
| Michael Y. Rogers | $473 | $0 | -100% |
| Total subsidies | $6,614,331 | $2,630,611 | -60.2% |
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