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In 2021, 209 farmers in cities within Willacy County received a total of $6.3 million in 482 farm subsidies, a 56.2% decrease compared to 2020, when the total was $14.5 million in 717 farm subsidies.
Though farm subsidies support agriculture in the U.S., pumping $7 trillion into the economy, they are not without controversy.
The American Action Forum discovered that the most highly subsidized crops - corn, soy, wheat, and rice - are often consumed in highly processed ways, which leads to unhealthy eating habits and obesity, while the fruits and vegetables needed for a healthy diet are rarely subsidized.
"We are consuming more calories, fats, sodium, and sugars, and not enough beneficial nutrients and vitamins," Tara O'Neill Hayes wrote. "It is critical that both policymakers and the American public understand the influence that federal agricultural subsidies have on our food supply and diet and, in turn, our nutrition and health."
Farm subsidies have also been criticized for assisting the highest-earning agricultural businesses, not local farmers on their family farms who are barely getting by.
Kimberly Amadeo of The Balance said farmer subsidies "help high-income corporations, not poor rural farmers. Most of the money goes toward large agribusinesses."
The U.S. has provided farm subsidies since the Great Depression to assist farmers who weather price fluctuations and disasters, to help maintain consistent farming across the country.
Farmers and Their Subsidies in Cities Associated with Willacy County, Year Over Year
| Farmer | Total Received in 2020 | Total Received in 2021 | % Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anaqua Farms | $948,454 | $467,314 | -50.7% |
| Double Z. Farms | $467,905 | $349,156 | -25.4% |
| Zdansky Joint Venture | $438,882 | $306,259 | -30.2% |
| W & W Farms PTNS | $364,137 | $270,790 | -25.6% |
| Chappell Farms | $749,564 | $268,562 | -64.2% |
| El Jardin Partnership | $530,102 | $243,232 | -54.1% |
| J & H Scogin Farms | $392,041 | $207,474 | -47.1% |
| 7L Farm | $588,428 | $207,157 | -64.8% |
| C & W Scogin Farms | $360,969 | $197,591 | -45.3% |
| Magnolia Farms | $367,759 | $197,471 | -46.3% |
| Swanberg Farms | $441,351 | $194,384 | -56% |
| Shewmaker Farms | $367,893 | $174,048 | -52.7% |
| DeWitt Farms | $382,327 | $169,852 | -55.6% |
| Klostermann Farms | $433,364 | $161,207 | -62.8% |
| Las Dos Palmas Farms Partnership | $363,960 | $156,379 | -57% |
| Spence Pennington A. Farms | $244,518 | $137,028 | -44% |
| Galle Farms PTN | $365,680 | $131,321 | -64.1% |
| Widget Farms | $142,514 | $128,596 | -9.8% |
| C & V Farms | $317,510 | $125,313 | -60.5% |
| Encino Farms | $366,789 | $125,220 | -65.9% |
| First Community Bank | $244,055 | $124,217 | -49.1% |
| Pohlmeyer | $340,346 | $110,482 | -67.5% |
| Johnson Farms Partnership | $242,560 | $100,745 | -58.5% |
| Johnson Farms, Inc. | $102,778 | $93,849 | -8.7% |
| Pennington Farms, Inc. | $184,657 | $87,413 | -52.7% |
| Swanco Farms, LLC | $195,459 | $83,602 | -57.2% |
| Thomas and Joe Land and Cattle | $202,437 | $78,385 | -61.3% |
| William N Durbin JR | $79,272 | $71,397 | -9.9% |
| Stone Brothers | $535,552 | $69,639 | -87% |
| Barbara J. Chappell | $212,027 | $69,102 | -67.4% |
| Charles Wetegrove Company | $238,658 | $68,875 | -71.1% |
| Parker Brothers Farms, LLC | $151,639 | $61,442 | -59.5% |
| Rhodes Farms PTN | $189,192 | $58,509 | -69.1% |
| Bennard Rowland III | $30,313 | $58,120 | 91.7% |
| Dustin C. Swanberg | $132,846 | $53,135 | -60% |
| Ball Farms | $86,478 | $48,952 | -43.4% |
| T & S Lemmons Farms | $110,005 | $47,624 | -56.7% |
| Clifton Lee Smith | $79,672 | $45,101 | -43.4% |
| Israel Salazar Jr. | $81,180 | $41,997 | -48.3% |
| Lancimar, Corp. | $125,469 | $40,396 | -67.8% |
| First Community Bank | $0 | $35,802 | -- |
| El Terco Shrimp Farm, LLC | $15,740 | $34,463 | 119% |
| Mr Avan O. Guerra | $7,961 | $31,415 | 294.6% |
| Robert B. Ballenger Jr. | $119,783 | $30,244 | -74.8% |
| Hinojosa Farms, Inc. | $70,867 | $29,926 | -57.8% |
| Swanberg Family Farms, Ltd. | $49,842 | $24,585 | -50.7% |
| Dana S. Kiefer | $118,442 | $22,008 | -81.4% |
| Joe A. Pennington | $58,671 | $21,861 | -62.7% |
| Zapata FMS, Inc. | $119,749 | $18,631 | -84.4% |
| Alazan Farms LP | $17,477 | $18,618 | 6.5% |
| Carroll D. Stone | $38,365 | $15,447 | -59.7% |
| Stuart Reagan Stone | $38,360 | $15,443 | -59.7% |
| Ivan Salazar | $23,517 | $14,580 | -38% |
| Oscar & Hortencia Garcia Family, Ltd. | $0 | $14,223 | -- |
| N & S Farms | $38,100 | $14,109 | -63% |
| Eej Family Partnership, Ltd. | $41,969 | $13,611 | -67.6% |
| Evaristo Barron | $22,191 | $12,650 | -43% |
| D & K Johnson | $94,641 | $12,176 | -87.1% |
| TMZ West, LLC | $7,247 | $12,055 | 66.3% |
| Israel Salazar | $25,280 | $11,804 | -53.3% |
| George C Reoh | $14,563 | $11,679 | -19.8% |
| USA, Farm Service Agency | $25,712 | $10,871 | -57.7% |
| Blayne Curtis Rowland | $12,569 | $9,753 | -22.4% |
| Willamar Gin Company LP | $8,381 | $9,463 | 12.9% |
| Martin E Garcia, DVM | $17,811 | $9,343 | -47.5% |
| Daryl W. Lassig | $23,787 | $8,213 | -65.5% |
| Norman E. Nyquist | $18,011 | $7,893 | -56.2% |
| United States of America, Farm Service Agency | $0 | $7,821 | -- |
| H. R. Calvin Jr. | $21,988 | $7,577 | -65.5% |
| Roland Williams Sr. | $15,583 | $7,438 | -52.3% |
| Vassberg Farms | $24,583 | $7,191 | -70.7% |
| Frances Krupala | $17,257 | $6,613 | -61.7% |
| Agnes Pauline McGee | $0 | $6,496 | -- |
| Wilburn Malm | $18,694 | $6,173 | -67% |
| Steve D. Krenek | $12,442 | $5,519 | -55.6% |
| Colton Lynn Smith | $6,644 | $5,461 | -17.8% |
| Nicole Powers 2010 Trust | $0 | $5,346 | -- |
| Saul Garza | $18,245 | $5,276 | -71.1% |
| TMZ East, LLC | $3,066 | $5,192 | 69.3% |
| Texas Agriscience, LLC | $12,952 | $4,991 | -61.5% |
| Kenneth R Johnson Family Trustee | $10,078 | $4,963 | -50.8% |
| Catherine Rains | $9,559 | $4,817 | -49.6% |
| 507 Planting, LLC | $3,680 | $4,641 | 26.1% |
| Mr. Agustin Lopez Jr. | $9,770 | $4,536 | -53.6% |
| Harold Lemmons, Inc. | $3,828 | $4,516 | 18% |
| USDA - Farm Service Agency | $0 | $4,349 | -- |
| Michael D. Lassig | $12,459 | $3,993 | -68% |
| Carl Vassberg Family Partnership, LLC | $0 | $3,696 | -- |
| Rhodes Land Company, Ltd. | $13,008 | $3,468 | -73.3% |
| Joe G. Solis | $0 | $3,456 | -- |
| Terry Pohlmeyer | $14,380 | $3,417 | -76.2% |
| Garry White | $12,308 | $3,344 | -72.8% |
| Santa Cecilia Ranch Partnership L | $8,588 | $3,338 | -61.1% |
| Jimmy R Ellington - Jimmy R Ellington & Barbara C | $0 | $2,883 | -- |
| Charles J Vassberg Estate | $8,135 | $2,424 | -70.2% |
| Robert B Ballenger JR Trust | $8,016 | $2,424 | -69.8% |
| David Saenz | $3,593 | $2,418 | -32.7% |
| AVM Farms, LLC | $811 | $2,275 | 180.5% |
| Judith A. Snow | $2,278 | $2,272 | -0.3% |
| Steven May | $7,479 | $2,266 | -69.7% |
| Thomas A. Herold | $2,577 | $2,252 | -12.6% |
| Gunner Stone 2010 Trust | $0 | $2,145 | -- |
| Daniel Vassberg | $6,997 | $2,085 | -70.2% |
| South Texas Agent Research - RGV, Inc. | $6,283 | $2,059 | -67.2% |
| Ernesto Hernandez | $8,311 | $2,057 | -75.2% |
| Mauro C. Alvarez | $6,215 | $2,039 | -67.2% |
| Russell Klostermann | $6,579 | $2,022 | -69.3% |
| Anastacio Cavazos | $4,015 | $1,998 | -50.2% |
| Calvin D Johnson Family Trust | $6,872 | $1,947 | -71.7% |
| John E. Christian | $2,208 | $1,926 | -12.8% |
| Rogaciana, LLC | $11,986 | $1,842 | -84.6% |
| James Riggan | $8,199 | $1,738 | -78.8% |
| Salome Saenz | $5,977 | $1,713 | -71.3% |
| Mary C. Oaks | $4,394 | $1,673 | -61.9% |
| Lucio Mendoza | $10,204 | $1,632 | -84% |
| Lois G Land | $4,529 | $1,628 | -64.1% |
| Charles R. Chappell | $4,619 | $1,575 | -65.9% |
| Raul R. Chapa | $3,349 | $1,521 | -54.6% |
| Miguel J. Olvera | $5,319 | $1,497 | -71.9% |
| Juan A. Mendez | $0 | $1,429 | -- |
| Margaret Alida Klostermann | $5,588 | $1,427 | -74.5% |
| Robin Flowers to Go LC | $4,196 | $1,409 | -66.4% |
| Dennis Hoot | $3,560 | $1,392 | -60.9% |
| Larry A. Wheelock | $4,604 | $1,391 | -69.8% |
| William Robert Adameit | $3,362 | $1,356 | -59.7% |
| Kenneth R. Bruce | $12,920 | $1,332 | -89.7% |
| Ernesto Zamora | $6,187 | $1,326 | -78.6% |
| Mark A. Brown Sr. | $2,224 | $1,220 | -45.1% |
| James Riggan | $0 | $1,182 | -- |
| Pedro G. Capetillo | $2,118 | $1,158 | -45.3% |
| Debby Haynes Johnson Exempt Lifetime Trustee | $0 | $1,144 | -- |
| Velma N. Garcia | $3,181 | $1,144 | -64% |
| Rosie Capetillo | $3,403 | $1,099 | -67.7% |
| Mark S. Hart | $3,248 | $1,094 | -66.3% |
| Leonor M. Barragan | $1,633 | $1,068 | -34.6% |
| CT & Barbara Chappell 1998 Managementtrust | $0 | $1,030 | -- |
| Ellen C. Ballenger | $4,636 | $1,006 | -78.3% |
| Victoria Salinas-Morrow | $3,071 | $966 | -68.5% |
| Armando Duarte | $3,139 | $952 | -69.7% |
| Charles Stephen Lemmons | $442 | $947 | 114.3% |
| Kevin Trapp | $2,714 | $902 | -66.8% |
| Leonel Garza | $0 | $901 | -- |
| Juan J. Gracia | $4,834 | $838 | -82.7% |
| Rafael Montalvo Sr. | $0 | $813 | -- |
| Hipolito Coy | $0 | $770 | -- |
| Juan Rene Gonzalez | $1,916 | $732 | -61.8% |
| Fred Klostermann Family Trust | $2,645 | $713 | -73% |
| Frances May Berg | $3,987 | $701 | -82.4% |
| Gaye Noyola | $1,511 | $633 | -58.1% |
| Alfredo L. Garcia | $1,665 | $618 | -62.9% |
| Melvin L. Gay | $1,997 | $606 | -69.7% |
| Juan Tovar | $3,017 | $604 | -80% |
| Consuelo Fitch | $1,238 | $587 | -52.6% |
| Jaime E. Lozano | $2,827 | $580 | -79.5% |
| Tyler Bennard Rowland | $1,287 | $574 | -55.4% |
| Reynaldo Garza Jr. | $1,211 | $510 | -57.9% |
| Adrain Ramirez | $1,155 | $491 | -57.5% |
| Irma H. Infante | $1,023 | $491 | -52% |
| Belinda H. Rios | $1,022 | $490 | -52.1% |
| Maria Ester H. Garza | $1,022 | $490 | -52.1% |
| Maria Juanita H. Benavidez | $1,022 | $490 | -52.1% |
| Gary Coleman | $2,416 | $485 | -79.9% |
| Alfonso Cavazos Jr. | $3,824 | $483 | -87.4% |
| Guadalupe Espinoza | $1,837 | $471 | -74.4% |
| Peggy Lewene Vassberg | $0 | $463 | -- |
| Mitzi Swanberg Anzaldua | $577 | $442 | -23.4% |
| Ana M. Butler | $1,848 | $402 | -78.2% |
| Paula K. Lopez | $532 | $386 | -27.4% |
| Cardinal Body Shop LC | $1,370 | $377 | -72.5% |
| Yvonne J. Wright | $948 | $357 | -62.3% |
| Rafael Vela | $627 | $355 | -43.4% |
| Brian J. Schalk | $774 | $344 | -55.6% |
| Jeanette Cash | $435 | $306 | -29.7% |
| Armando Jose Correa Jr. | $2,261 | $290 | -87.2% |
| Rodney Ray Rivera | $289 | $281 | -2.8% |
| Antonio W. Hernandez | $3,614 | $273 | -92.4% |
| Hector Eloy Perez | $0 | $270 | -- |
| Wenda A. Kolterman | $0 | $270 | -- |
| Jesus Rene Coy | $1,078 | $256 | -76.3% |
| Mr. Kenneth T. Butler Jr. | $3,756 | $255 | -93.2% |
| Frank J Krupala | $717 | $252 | -64.9% |
| Maria De Jesus Cortez | $5,641 | $236 | -95.8% |
| Steve P. Studebaker | $791 | $224 | -71.7% |
| Kenneth T. Butler Jr. | $0 | $223 | -- |
| Alfred Spence Pennington | $49 | $217 | 342.9% |
| Hannah Zdansky | $0 | $213 | -- |
| Arturo R. Garza | $240 | $210 | -12.5% |
| Frank Rodriguez | $533 | $204 | -61.7% |
| Marlene Garcia | $0 | $200 | -- |
| Mike Fonseca Jr. | $421 | $182 | -56.8% |
| Eva Caballero | $421 | $178 | -57.7% |
| Joel Cardenas | $696 | $174 | -75% |
| Bluebird Pet Store L C | $1,160 | $172 | -85.2% |
| Ramiro Rivera | $221 | $171 | -22.6% |
| Marlene Garcia | $0 | $165 | -- |
| Allan B. Spence | $493 | $147 | -70.2% |
| Oscar M Garcia, Inc. | $1,741 | $144 | -91.7% |
| Mark S. Swanberg | $238 | $142 | -40.3% |
| Obdulia Martinez Arriaga | $323 | $128 | -60.4% |
| Elia M. Cavazos | $82 | $125 | 52.4% |
| Olivia Garza | $354 | $118 | -66.7% |
| Jose Raul Ramirez III | $860 | $114 | -86.7% |
| Riata Cattle Company, Inc. | $94,612 | $102 | -99.9% |
| Arturo A. Gomez Jr. | $681 | $86 | -87.4% |
| Dorina Noyola | $296 | $83 | -72% |
| Christina Tonya Lopez | $0 | $80 | -- |
| Rosemarie Rivera | $98 | $80 | -18.4% |
| Sandra O. Ezell | $249 | $68 | -72.7% |
| Ruben L. Castillo | $10 | $8 | -20% |
| B. S. Rowland II | $118,536 | $0 | -100% |
| Javier Gonzales | $39 | $0 | -100% |
| Rodolfo Cantu | $2,438 | $0 | -100% |
| Rolando Anzaldua | $1,017 | $0 | -100% |
| Adalberto Ramirez III | $581 | $0 | -100% |
| Alden Johnson | $15,460 | $0 | -100% |
| Alma J. Gomez | $94 | $0 | -100% |
| Alonso Vela | $224 | $0 | -100% |
| Barbara A. Ruggieri | $292 | $0 | -100% |
| Benjamin James Stewart | $47 | $0 | -100% |
| Carl Vassberg Family Partnership | $12,405 | $0 | -100% |
| Debby Haynes Johnson Exempt Lifet | $2,269 | $0 | -100% |
| Dorothy Mae Galle | $10,077 | $0 | -100% |
| Eduardo M. Salinas | $951 | $0 | -100% |
| Eloara R Cantu | $453 | $0 | -100% |
| Faustino Gonzalez | $605 | $0 | -100% |
| Jerry Vassberg | $776 | $0 | -100% |
| Jimmy Ellington - Jimmy R. R. Ellin | $10,148 | $0 | -100% |
| Leonel Garcia | $2,097 | $0 | -100% |
| Lindsey Suarez | $165 | $0 | -100% |
| Lloyd Galle | $10,313 | $0 | -100% |
| Maria Del Socorro Hinojosa | $108 | $0 | -100% |
| Mike Hinojosa | $13,435 | $0 | -100% |
| Orlando Lee Gonzales | $605 | $0 | -100% |
| Ricardo Salinas | $385 | $0 | -100% |
| Richard Kolterman | $857 | $0 | -100% |
| A. J. Cantu | $734 | $0 | -100% |
| Agnes Pauline McGee | $6,136 | $0 | -100% |
| Aida S. Cantu | $79 | $0 | -100% |
| Armando Cortinas | $166 | $0 | -100% |
| Christina R. Caldera | $1,218 | $0 | -100% |
| CT & Barbara Chappell 1998 Manage | $2,298 | $0 | -100% |
| Dan Wetegrove | $65,766 | $0 | -100% |
| Edward C. Willis | $592 | $0 | -100% |
| Edward O. Hammond | $612 | $0 | -100% |
| Efrain Ramirez Hernandez | $550 | $0 | -100% |
| Fred Klostermann | $4,285 | $0 | -100% |
| Harold Parker | $939 | $0 | -100% |
| Homero F. Rodriguez | $6,002 | $0 | -100% |
| Jaime Villarreal | $170 | $0 | -100% |
| John E. Sanchez | $506 | $0 | -100% |
| Juan Orozco | $149 | $0 | -100% |
| Juanita Lemmons | $3,810 | $0 | -100% |
| Leonel Garza Jr. | $2,184 | $0 | -100% |
| Luis Sanchez | $6,095 | $0 | -100% |
| Mary Helen D. Woods | $5,071 | $0 | -100% |
| Maximiano Chapa SR | $1,108 | $0 | -100% |
| Patricio Herrera | $290 | $0 | -100% |
| Ramon G. Cantu | $1,214 | $0 | -100% |
| Ricardo Cesar Garcia | $1,557 | $0 | -100% |
| Rosie Lee Hommel | $3,137 | $0 | -100% |
| Texas Farm Credit Service | $189,953 | $0 | -100% |
| Thomas J. Rains Jr. | $11,499 | $0 | -100% |
| United States of America, Farm Se | $43,521 | $0 | -100% |
| Wanda M Reoh | $1,318 | $0 | -100% |
| Ignacio Perez | $978 | $0 | -100% |
| John Joe Hinojosa | $1,296 | $0 | -100% |
| Oscar & Hortencia Garcia Family L | $36,207 | $0 | -100% |
| Total subsidies | $14,460,370 | $6,337,959 | -56.2% |
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