Sean Dengler.

Since retiring from farming, I have reflected on it more than needed. While there are parts I could have done better, it also showed me how hard it is for a younger generation to gain a foothold in today’s farming world. It is no secret that farmers are an older bunch, and consolidation keeps happening within the industry. This continues to lead the state down a path where, at some point in the distant future, one person or business might possibly farm the majority of a single county.

This runs counter to what is better where political and financial power is spread out among the masses and not consolidated in fewer hands. This is better for people’s livelihoods and for democracy. Consolidated financial power creates a rickety system like we saw during COVID and the resulting meatpacking plant closures and baby formula shortages. This rickety system is coming to fruition with our food system. According to the USDA, a country that has a region called the breadbasket of the world, has imported more food than it exports for the last three years running with the trade balance growing worse each year. Never has the United States been in this unfortunate situation. These supply chain disruptions which happened during COVID could start to happen to the U.S.’s food system when a significant global event happens.

This comes from competition policy or lack thereof which pushes for consolidation and not rural communities and small family farmers. This happens due to always pushing the number to go up. Thank you to both Matt Stoller and Odd Lots host Joe Wiesenthal for illustrating this point, but the number always goes up. Think about a 401K or the stock market at large. When it goes up, that means everything is going well. Many Americans are dependent on the 401K to go up to secure a good retirement.

When examining closer around rural and urban Iowa, doctor offices have closed, nutritious, healthy food is harder to find, and schools are consolidating. It is tough to believe how stock prices going up is truly positively impacting society. Unfortunately, policy is set to keep pushing this number up like bailing out the banks in 2008.

This rule of the number always needing to go up plays a role in land prices. It can be said no one is making more land, and that plays a role. What is more significant is that these large agricultural firms are dependent on propping up the current policy structure to increase their stock price. When farmers hit tough times like during the first Trump administration’s trade war with China bailout or the ECAP bailout, farmers will take the money. More than likely this money goes off, directly or indirectly, to the large agricultural firms whether input or financial providers to keep their number going up. This puts upward pressure on land prices or keeps them inflated because the government is helping prop up this industry. This is also in combination with other policies which subsidize certain grain production.

Unfortunately, this makes it harder for a young farmer to compete for land resources whether they want to expand their corn, soybean production or start a small fruit and/or vegetable farm. The large operations can use increasing land prices to help sustain or grow their operation while keeping younger or smaller family farms competing on an unequal playing field. This also perpetuates wealth consolidating in fewer hands and away from rural communities.

While the government plays a role in the issue of propping up land prices and making it harder for younger generations to get a foothold, it can also change its role to helping. This is by making the markets more competitive for farmers so they can keep more of what they make. The government can change the policy so companies are investing and competing for farmers and rural communities’ dollars which will take their focus off only making their number go higher. It is clear the policy of making the number go higher is not truly benefitting most people. It is time to take a different approach so small farmers still giving it a go, have a better chance of handing the farm to the next generation.

Sean Dengler is a writer, comedian, now-retired beginning farmer, and host of the Pandaring Talk podcast who grew up on a farm between Traer and Dysart. You can reach him at sean.h.dengler@gmail.com.