American farmer visits, sees impact of U.S. farm subsidies on West African farmers

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Commodity subsidies are payments by the U.S. government given directly to producers of cotton, wheat, rice, corn (maize) and a few other selected crops. These subsidies are problematic, as they benefit just one-quarter of all US producers, while doing little to help sustain rural America. Studies show that subsidies contribute to farm consolidation and environmental degradation, while artificially raising land values.

Agricultural subsidies have dire negative impacts abroad as well. By encouraging overproduction, US subsidies lower the world price of subsidized crops, such as cotton. It’s simple : when you have too much of something, the price for it goes down. Some of the world’s poorest people rely on farming to make a living, but poor farmers across the world who are not subsidized simply can’t compete with American farmers.

Terry Steinhour farms about 650 acres in Illinois, the heart of corn-producing country. He has also been vocal about reforming US farm policy. “It should address the needs of family farmers, not industrial-sized farms,” he said. In July of 2006 he traveled with four other farmers to Senegal and Mali and met with African farmers and public officials to discuss the impact American farm policies have on the rest of the world. They all delivered the same message: “Do something about your country’s farm subsidies…they’re killing us!”

“We were all stunned by what we experienced. I had only been aware of African society from TV or in the news,” Steinhour said. “The poverty was so extreme and widespread.” The experience was life changing, especially the new knowledge that farm communities around the world are affected by the decisions of U.S. policymakers.

A great majority of these people live in rural areas and are dependent on agriculture for their livelihoods. Because of unfair trade practices, the world’s poorest families find themselves trapped in a cycle of poverty. The average European cow receives more in government subsidies every day than half the world’s population earns in wages. Propped up by government subsidies, American and European farmers unload cheap goods on the world market at a cost often far below the price of production, leaving farmers in the developing world, not to mention the majority of American family farmers, unable to sell, much less compete. In 2005, the US spent close to $24 billion on agricultural subsidies, most directed to large-scale corporate-owned farming operations like Monsanto, Cargill and Archer Daniels Midland.

Steinhour also receives government subsidies. “I don’t like receiving them,” he says, “but yes, I cash the cheques.” For Midwestern farmers, subsidies are a matter of survival. “I would much rather receive a fair price for what I produce on my farm and eliminate the need for the subsidy cheque.” He said many Illinois corn growers only make a small profit or experience a net loss on their farms. “I can’t think of anyone that doesn’t have off-the-farm income to make ends meet. There’s got to be some sort of safety net for U.S. farmers but the current system makes farmers overproduce, which pushes prices down." Before the price of corn increased due to demand for corn-based ethanol, Steinhour was making a small profit for every acre of corn he grew. He is now afraid prices are artificially high and the demand for corn won’t last very long.

On a hot day in the village of Dafara in Mali, an entire community, in a well-prepared presentation, explained to Steinhour and his companions that U.S. farm policy is decreasing their cotton prices. One villager stood up and said, “The only thing we know is to work hard. Is there something you can do with your government so I can get something out of what I do?”

Steinhour began to understand the effect subsidized farming has on countries and people throughout the world. Like him, Seydou Ouedraogo, a cotton farmer from Burkina Faso provides for his family through his land. Like most farmers in the region, he engages in a mix of subsistence farming for his family and cotton for a cash crop, which he grows on about 10 acres of land. Unlike Steinhour, Seydou does not receive any subsidies.

“How do you reach out and help those less fortunate?” Steinhour asks. “I’m going to continue working to change US farm policy. It’s the only option to help third-world countries.”

The current U.S. Farm Bill will expire this year, and the US Congress will consider changes to American agricultural policies. A number of groups are working to ensure that the needed reform will take place.

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Farm subsidies are an emotive, contentious issue and a political hot potato in the U.S. Because of how deeply entrenched they have become in agriculture and in the economy as a whole, any efforts at significant reform of the subsidy system can be expected to be met with stiff resistance from many quarters.

Editor