Farming gets tougher

greenspun.com : LUSENET : Countryside : One Thread

A friend of mine was having hard times on the farm.He farmed hundreds of acres of land,the same land his father and his father's father farmed.Despite a inheritance of hard work and adherence to new scientific marvels that increased production,which would have been rewarded very handsomely in another industry,the return on his products remained ever so woeful. Farming was part of my friend's heritage,so the thought of him chosing to tend the land and not making it,is chilling. My friend's problem is not unique though, thousands of farmers not only in Michigan but across this country find themselves in similar situations. Our lives are tied together with a sense of concern. Thru the years as production, furnished by the new mechanical wonders & strange named fertilizers increased,farmers became even better producers. But in what seems a fluke, the family farm did not benefit from these technological advancements. Farmers spent more,they produced more,but they never earned much more. When land values increased,farmers were encouraged by government and banks to borrow more, Big is the way to be,we were told. New farm equipment,new homes,barns,trucks,more land. Then land prices fell & lenders wanted their money back. The result was an earthquake of debt that emotionally unsettled rural America. As family farms went under,anger rippled thoughout their communities. I know most non-farm people have felt sorry for the family farmer but yet at the same time speak about the wonders of how huge farm corporations can be so much more efficient,cheaper. They say such is the cost of progress. So small farms began to vanish,some of my farm friends took jobs off the farm that paid better and were not dependent on seasons or the price of corn.Rural families left for the cities,cities began to bulge,people called it urban sprawl,and in the process former pasture lands were paved over for malls. Living and dying with the family farm was once a symbolic image we all treasured,like family,hard work,and love of God & country. On the farm,everyone in the family had a job and a purpose. The place of work was the home & it provided an honest living along with a need for mutual trust. The management of the farm took place right at the kitchen table,a image that can't be replaced nor should it be. Today,we are losing & in some cases have already lost that symbolic vision of the American family farm. Our world has become increasingly disconnected. More and more there is the idea we don't need each other,we have grown distant from one another,yet the old values of the American family farm remain as important today as in the past. This coming Tuesday, I will say goodbye to my farming friend for the last time, as he sat at that kitchen table and the thought of failure took over his mind, he took his life with pull of a trigger. Amidst the frustration, I'm still optimistic though that as a nation we will eventually come to our senses and realize the valuable role of our family farms,that they are the producers of the food you put on your tables each and every day. With time,perseverance,ingenuity and a willingness to make necessary adjustments,success and farming may one day go hand in hand and the family farm as a symbol of family values,work ethic and overall spirituality will once again become a badge of honor for our nation!

Let's be careful out there, TomK

-- TomK (tjk@cac.net), May 19, 2001

Answers

TomK,

Something that you may find ironic is that around here many small farms were lost also, but some of the true survirors were also small family farms. A good example is the family a couple of counties over. They went in debt as you described to expand to 2500 acres. When they started losing the battle, they converted part of their holdings into a golf course and country club while scaling the farm down to less worked acreage than they worked before expanding, while increasing yeilds and profits through use of BISF and organic techniques. The remaining acreage has been seeded with christmas trees and pulpwood. The old man that owns all this explained to us that his major problem before was "farming with the blinders on". When he accepted the concept of diversification and niche marketing, he was able to not only save his holdings, but become profitable also. Guess all it really take to make it is to look outside the box and take the blinders off.

-- Jay Blair in N. AL (jayblair678@yahoo.com), May 19, 2001.


I grew up on family farm in Iowa. Tough for me but Dad died before I was old enough to take over. This was when things started to change. Mom sold farm couple years before land prices zoomed with Earl Butz "get big or get out" so maybe just as well. When I finished college, I thought about farming as my hermit type personality fit well with such an independent occupation. However the numbers didnt crunch any which way. Best I could figure, if I pieced together bunch of junk machinery, avoided all modern chemicals, and avoided all debt, I might be able to just get by IF I already owned the land outright which I didnt. Add a bank note on the land into the mix and the bank saying I MUST use all the modern junk and farm THEIR way and it was just a no win mix. Thats how I ended up being a homesteader or what some who like a fast paced go-go lifestyle call a rural poverty "BUM".

To TomK, I can understand. I too would prefer the '50's and '60's where a good, hardworking farmer could raise commodities and make it on 80-160 acres. Think that was a better world. At least a more honorable one maybe.

And all due respect to Jay, but running a golf course, and having to go out and sell niche markets and partially value enhanced goods is not the same lifestyle as the old commodity farm where you met your own needs and sold the surplus to the local elevator or in the local sale barn to raise cash. I would fit in the old lifestyle. I am not a people-person who does well trying to sell things to people. And if I was a salesman, there are more profitable things to sell. The "modern" world has changed farming from an honorable lifestyle to a dog eat dog factory buisiness and a mighty poor one at that. Taken the fun/independence out of it and made it just another rat race struggle.

-- Hermit John (Hermit@hilltop_homestead.zzn.com), May 20, 2001.


It seems farming is no longer a lifestyle but a business. The successful farmers I know are not sentimental towards their land and old ways. Many have close ties to agribusiness (contract livestock mostly), farm only part time and have another job, or succeed in niche markets such as organic vegetables or nursery operations. The ones around here acknowledge the fact that its hard to compete with cheap labor overseas, huge farm machinery, and the other engines of big business without appropriating some of the methods of big business. Sadly, they aren't competing with just their neighbors anymore but with foreign countries where people live like peasants -- requiring that they become almost cut-throat in how they operate.

The small organic growers I know work hard to diversify and sell direct to consumers or grocers, some are even fairly profitable (though, admittedly, fresh produce brings higher prices here in Alaska, even in the summer). I'm wondering how long it will be until the organic market is swallowed up by the likes of Monsanto and Tyson too and moved to foreign countries with low labor costs. I suspect the one thing that may actually help local farmers is high gas and oil prices as this will eventually make shipping goods from South America or other places unprofitable compared with local production.

-- Michael Nuckols (nuckolsm@wildak.net), May 22, 2001.


Moderation questions? read the FAQ