I grew up in the dead center of CA's agricultural core and let me tell you, "farmers" don't exist as they do in your mind. If farms are actually still owned by a family that has passed it down for generations, they don't farm the land, they rent it. CA's not as reliant on what Argentina produces compared to say the American midwest, but the central point stands - when someone talks about the poor farmers, they're talking about a ghost of the past. America's agriculture isn't operated by a bunch of folksy hard working angelic serfs. I'm sure Mega Ag corps will weather the storm just fine.
While they might appear big they are not mega Ag companies. The bulk of farms in the USA are family owned none mega corp companies. You are correct in that the land under their feet is not owned by them but what is also highly concerning and been allowed to prosper since the 80s is the patenting of seeds. Places like Bayer groups squeezing farmers not allowing them or bioengineering plants so they can't be used for next year's seed stock is destroying family farms.
Republican and democrat a like have been just as eager to roll over to agriculture lobbiests through the years much like they have given up rights in every other sector only to benifit the wealthy.
God knows what the cost has done on farm equipment through the years. I haven't kept up on that but it's probably lease hell for farmers now.
This post was edited by SBD on Nov 2 2025 10:50am