So God Made a Farmer 

Paul Harvey says it all in this well-thought-out statement, “And on the eighth day, God looked down on His planned paradise and said, ‘I need a caretaker,’ so God made a farmer.”

U.S. farmers are the hands that feed us, as well as most of the world. 

One may not believe this, but two out of three bushels of corn in the world originates in the U.S. Our farmers provide one-fourth of the world’s beef and one-fifth of the world’s eggs, milk and grain. 

In 2001, 45 percent of the world’s soybeans were produced in the U.S., and cotton is by far the most dominant fiber produced – used for clothing and home fabrics, as well as manufacturing purposes.

Of nearly 170 countries in the world, about 110 produce at least some sugar, and the governments of all these countries intervene in cost or trade of their sugar production. This makes sugar one of the most heavily subsidized commodities in the world. 

Sugar policy

U.S sugar farmers have not received government payment since the expiration of the U.S. Sugar Act of 1974. 

The cost of production is the farmer’s responsibility and risk, which keeps going up due to Environmental Protection Agency and government regulations. Seed, fertilizer, chemicals and the high price of fuel this year have been stressful for many. 

Sugar prices have been dropping in 2025 due to a global oversupply driven by excellent weather conditions in major producing regions like Brazil, India and Thailand, which led to higher production and exports, particularly from Brazil and India. This increase in supply outpaced demand. 

U.S. lawmakers must assure the implementation of a strong farm bill with sugar policy. Sugar policy works for taxpayers because sugar farmers don’t receive subsidy checks. 

Current U.S. sugar policy is working well and operating as designed. It is the least expensive commodity program in the farm bill, and it is the only viable safety net available to sugar farm families. 

Sugar factories repay their operating loans back to the Commodity Credit Corporation government loan program with interest.

Sugar policy costs zero dollars since it is included in the farm bill. It will remain zero – or low-cost – in the future unless altered. The only year in the past where it carried a cost was in 2013, which was the direct result of Mexico dumping subsidized sugar onto the U.S. market.

U.S. producers are among the world’s most efficient and are championing a new “zero-for-zero” sugar proposal which would eliminate U.S. policy in exchange for other countries dropping their subsidized sugar and letting a free market form. 

But unilateral disarmament should not be an option because it would fail to achieve free-market goals. It would reward the world’s biggest subsidizers and would punish an important U.S. industry. 

Sugar facts

According to the American Sugar Alliance, 11,000 beet and cane farmers produce about nine million tons of sugar a year on two million acres. 

Sugar creates more than 151,000 jobs in America and adds $23.3 billion to the U.S. economy. 

Many farmers depend on irrigation systems to water their crops. Currently, there are over 180 irrigation projects in 17 Western states. Irrigation projects are home of the sugarbeets in Western states. 

Irrigated agriculture’s product contribution to international trade and exports is more than $10 billion annually, and there are 34 million acres under irrigation systems. 

Western states like California, Colorado, Montana, Idaho, Nevada, Nebraska and my beloved state of Wyoming are part of the 1902 Reclamation Act. 

U.S. farmers are the hands that feed us, as well as most of the world. It is a good thing U.S. farmers continue to increase their efficiency.

Agriculture is America’s number one export and generates 20 percent of the U.S. gross domestic product. 

President Donald Trump’s effort to reduce or remove tariff and nontariff trade barriers in foreign markets is a noble effort. His strategy is designed to be fast and decisive. 

One in three acres of U.S. farmland is planted for exports. There will be millions of new mouths to feed, and many will be relying on U.S. farmers to be fed. 

Farmers operate in partnership with God as they care for His land and grow food for His people. 

As Paul Harvey stated, “On the eighth day, God looked at His paradise and said, ‘I need a caretaker,’ so God made a farmer.”

Klodette Stroh is the national sugar chairman for Women Involved in Farm Economics. She can be reached at strohfarms@tritel.net.