U.S. Farmers Stung by Tariffs Now Face a $3.5B Corn Loss

Re:U.S. Farmers Stung by Tariffs Now Face a $3.5B Corn Loss by twblalock on Friday August 16, 2019 @08:47PM (#20721123)

> “we subsidize critical resources because people die if there’s a shortage”

That's not the argument, though. Government subsidies are intended as welfare programs for farmers. Far more food is currently produced than would ever be needed in the case of a shortage. We could produce a lot less and still be fine.

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Re:U.S. Farmers Stung by Tariffs Now Face a $3.5B Corn Loss by nhorob67 on Friday August 16, 2019 @09:51PM (#20721426)

After the 2019 corn crop is harvested, the USDA is projecting 51.5 days of excess stocks in the United States

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Re:U.S. Farmers Stung by Tariffs Now Face a $3.5B Corn Loss by Retric on Friday August 16, 2019 @10:07PM (#20721504)

You can store food for 20 years. Actually having a 3+ year supply of food would cost less and provide more security than current subsidies.

Also, 51.5 days of excess stocks is not 51.5 days of food on hand.

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Re:U.S. Farmers Stung by Tariffs Now Face a $3.5B Corn Loss by petre on Saturday August 17, 2019 @01:44AM (#20722345)

Storage is already at a premium since the US-China trade war. Not enough storage facilities. Maybe the US should cut from the productiob subsidies and subsidize short term storage?

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