525,000.
That's how many farms we've lost since 1981. Those are small, medium, and family farms that simply do not exist anymore. Families who lost land they'd lived on for generations, and small towns that lost pillars of their community.
What caused this?
As you know, a lot has changed in the last 43 years. But farming practices in the United States have changed in striking ways.
Family farms — both small and medium-sized — have been enveloped by major farming corporations seeking to maximize their outputs and profits. Over the past four decades, these corporate farmers bought up smaller farms and squeezed every possible dollar out of each square inch of land. They forced smaller farms out of the market with cut-throat prices and simultaneously wrecked local ecosystems through the prolific use of pesticides, nitrogen-based fertilizers, and antibiotics .
Rural America is losing or, in some cases, has entirely lost its heritage of family farming.
We need to reinvest in our rural communities and in our smaller farmers, and support the vital work they perform. The Biden administration is working hard to ensure small- and medium-sized farms have an opportunity to thrive by incentivizing schools to buy food from local growers and through other incentives and systemic changes.
Small farms have been the backbone of rural economies for generations, and allowing them to be gobbled up has devastated rural communities. I am proud of One Country Project's work with the Department of Agriculture and the Biden administration to reverse this trend and strengthen rural communities once again.
If you want to hear more about current efforts to save small and family farming operations, listen to Heidi's recent conversation on the Hot Dish with Deputy Secretary of Agriculture, Xochitl Torres Small. [[link removed]]
listen Now [[link removed]]
Mike
Mike Espy, Former Secretary of Agriculture
Board Member, One Country Project
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Founded by former U.S. Senator Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND), the One Country Project is dedicated to reopening the dialogue with rural communities, rebuilding trust and respect, and advancing an opportunity agenda for rural Americans. Our mission is to ensure rural America’s priorities and values are heard, understood, well-represented and reflected in policy in Washington.
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