All-American Presidential Forums on PBS" Moderated by Tavis Smiley

"...when you address the farm problem, the farm crisis, I should say, in the United States, you're dealing with economics, you're dealing with politics, and you're dealing with corporate America."
John Mellencamp
Musician, Farm Aid co-founder

Read the interview

RURAL DEVELOPMENT

While the small family-owned farm has long been a celebrated institution in our nation, it is becoming increasingly harder for farmers to successfully maintain them. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, over the past half-century, there has been a 2/3 drop1 in the number of operational farms in the United States.

This trend has been accelerated by the rise of large, corporate farms. Although these larger entities make up just 7% of all farms2, they receive the majority of government subsidies3 and produce the majority of the nation's crops. With smaller farms generating less revenue4 than their larger competitors, and fewer government subsidies being allocated to them, many struggle to stay in business.

The decline of small farms reflects a growing difficulty in developing strong, rural communities. Rural areas throughout America have endured hemorrhaging in population, lack of infrastructure and economic shortcomings5.

In addition to the problems plaguing small farms, there is a lack of resources and government support for non-farm businesses. Without a steady flow of revenue that will attract new community members, rural areas fail to develop into strong, self-sufficient communities.

On the minds of many Americans:

1 The communities' best interest—is it in the nation's best interest to ensure that small farms and rural communities thrive?

2 Community decline—would the decline of the small farm inherently result in the decline of rural communities?

3 Hurt vs. help—do large, corporate farms hurt or help rural communities?

4 Impact on other demographics—how will the decline of rural communities impact other national demographics?

What do you think?

• Sources
• 1 NPR  (Visit website)
• 2 NPR  (Visit website)
• 3 The Heritage Foundation  (Visit website)
• 4 The Washington Post  (Visit website)
• 5 Center for Rural Affairs  (Visit website)