Policies to Assist Asset-Poor Farmers

Rationale

The family farm and ranch system is at a critical juncture. The disappearance of family farms is contributing to the dissolution of rural towns, as agribusiness does not employ enough people to support a town. Agriculture is an important source of employment in rural America. To maintain family farms, it is important to increase new farmer recruitment, reverse the bias toward large-scale farming and corporate concentration, and assist asset-poor future farmers to obtain capital to get into farming.

About Measure

States receive credit for having one or more of the following policies to assist asset-poor farmers: 1), agricultural bonds, 2) finance programs for farmers, 3) targeted programs for asset-poor farmers. A state receives 0 points if it does not have any of these policies; 0.33 points if it has one, 0.67 if it has two, and 1 point if it has all three.

Source

Information compiled by Wyatt Fraas of Rural Opportunities and Stewardship Program Center for Rural Affairs in Hartington, NE (Personal communication, 2002). Additional information from Communicating for Agriculture and Self Employed. List of State Beginning Farmer and Rancher Aggie Bond Finance Programs and Contacts. [On-line] Available:. (August 2002).