But how much of that is fed in by the subsidies keeping the market from crashing?
I’m seriously asking. The subsidy thing is something I’ve only (fairly) recently been fully aware of.
I think you’re missing the central point.
What he’s saying is that if because of price changes a bunch of farms go out of business, that lowers our capacity to generate food. If we later need that food, because of whatever happening internationally, we no longer are able to generate it. And it may be a year before new farmers can step up and meet the demand, since you have to spend a lot of time growing food.
In that year, it could kick our economy pretty hard as food prices skyrocket. And I have no desire for genuine hunger to be commonplace in 21st century America.
It’s like insurance. By guaranteeing a minimum price that means that farms aren’t going to go out of business, we keep the capacity at the ready if we need it.
Why should taxpayers pay for cheap milk?
All very true. Except I don’t know if it affects milk production. Unless feed crops are variable, milk should be pretty steady, I would think.