Agricultural leaders tell us that nothing can be done to return America to a small farm economy, an era long past. But that is very shortsighted and essentially dangerous.

The honest truth is that their policies have produced a landscape of empty farmsteads and ghost towns all across America.

The bigger is better refrain has dominated thought to the exclusion of rational reflection upon the destructive course we have followed.

Our leaders are locked in the grip of the bigger is better refrain, mesmerized by the “bigger and better” Pied Piper luring them, and us, ever closer to the cliff.

Those “authorities” will tell you that the course of agriculture brings larger and larger scalable agricultural systems.

They often advise that it is impossible, or nearly so, for a young, inexperienced person to get into farming. They don’t look for answers to the dilemma because they keep hearing the same “bigger is better” refrain supported by the verse “no room for new farmers.”

Well, let’s challenge that.

For well over the last century we have witnessed the complete devastation of rural America — not just the farms, but entire communities.

The decline of farm families meant diminished support for the shops, schools and churches of nearby towns, bringing failing municipalities.

Schools were depopulated, resulting in consolidation. In turn, consolidation decisions failed to consider the economic significance of schools to the community at large.

The loss of the school further depopulated the town and on and on. No one was, or is, thinking holistically. Having a vital farm economy is key — the very foundation of the entire economy.

Economists may not have intended to devastate rural America, but that was the result of their action. It’s time we faced the truth of the matter instead of pretending it’s not there. I, for one, am tired of playing the frog in the warming water and not recognizing that it has reached its boiling point!

The actions of agricultural economists over the past century amount to nothing less than social engineering. Yes, farmers and the youth of rural America have been engineered by economic persuasion to move to urban centers to survive. It’s time to reverse the course to socially engineer a revitalized rural America.

If the government can engineer its citizens to migrate to the cities, it can engineer them to return to the farms and communities of America’s heartland. It is no less than a matter of national security to “repair rural America.”

The farm bill typically spans a period of five years. With a new program about to begin, we have five years to turn this train around, making a new farm bill due in 2028. A government program that hearkens back to the days of the historic Homestead Act is the missing piece of the puzzle to begin the repair of rural America. Parity is how repair gets done. It would have to be a longterm process. We lost it all over the last century, and getting it back may well take another century.

Instead of 160 acres per homestead, the size would need to be determined according to localized conditions, but each “homestead” would be something that would provide a good living, considering production potential. Those who qualified would receive guaranteed 100 percent parity for their production.

Larger farms would continue under ongoing production support, although unable to reap the benefit of full parity.

That would give the small farms a competitive position and ultimately would allow for a larger percentage of farmers on the land.

Examples of prices paid in July 2023 are corn $6.36/bushel compared to full parity of $15.30/bushel, while wheat at $8.13/bushel compares to full parity at $20.40/bushel. Full parity for soybeans in July was $37.50 and cattle averaged $443.00/hundred weight. At those price, you don’t need to farm thousands of acres. Small farms could flourish and with them, small towns and a revitalized heartland.

The land would come slowly, from present-day farm sales as the older generation continues to bow out. In some cases, existing farm family members could qualify to stay on the land rather than leave for the city life. It took 100 years to break the farm economy, and it probably will take 100 years to fix it, but that doesn’t mean the rural economy has to continue on a decline or even a standstill.

We could easily see larger operations downsize when they recognize small farms are making very comfortable profits without having to manage mind-boggling mega-acreages. With potential downsizing, several small farm operations could operate on the same footprint as the previous larger operation, all with very sustainable margins of profit. In turn, greater profits will support the process of rebuilding small town economies. More than just a “repair” program for farms, additional support programs should be made available to encourage commercial investment in rural towns.

An investment in American stability and affluence in the heartland is good for all, for it supports the production of true wealth from production that comes from the earth. The cost on the surface is a tremendous commitment that can not be denied, but the benefit is one that also can not be denied.

INVESTMENT! That is the watchword. The current disastrous atmosphere in rural America is the result of social engineering, whether intentional or not. Farm programs have failed. It is time we INTENTIONALLY engineer a rural revitalization.

Don’t’ say that it can’t be done. Our farms, ranches and hometowns deserve nothing less as we Repair Rural America on The Way West.