Farm Subsidies - Big Business for Some Illinois Farmers

As previously stated, it is not the small farmer who benefits from U.S. government subsidies: it is the large agribusinesses that cover thousands of acres. According to the USDA, 60% of all farmers do not collect farm subsidies. That is because the crops they grow do not qualify for subsidy payments. In other words, they grow the WRONG CROPS. They don’t grow corn or apples or wheat or soybeans or rice. The small farmer may be growing cabbage, beets, heirloom potatoes, kale and carrots. These are crops that have a relatively short growing season, can be planted successively and can be rotated in order to replenish the soil and maintain its fertility.
According to the Environmental Working Group’s Farm Subsidy Database, a total of $682,283,000 was paid in corn subsidies to some of the large Illinois farms. The highest corn subsidy payments in 2003 (the latest figures available) were paid to Schlicht Farms Enterprises of Pleasant Plains ($422,640) and to Sauk Valley Farms of Dixon ($188,463). Those farms alone received a total of $721,295 for their combined crops of corn, soybeans, wheat and oats.