▶ Your Answer :
Agricultural subsidies are special payments
from the government given to farmers of certain crops, with greater output
leading to higher payment. Agricultural subsidies seem to offer some benefits,
but they can be argued upon.
First, although agricultural subsidies seem
to stabilize the food supply, the two have almost no relation. Subsidies may
motivate more famers to grow more crops, but the crops are not always used as
food. For example, a great deal of subsidies was given to corn farmers, but the
corn was not used as food, but as biofuel. Therefore, subsidies do not have a
role in stabilizing food supply.
Second, agricultural subsidies do not
contribute to lowering food price, but may actually increase it. Agricultural
subsidies are focused on only a few types of crops, such as corn, rice and soy.
This means that farmers would produce more crops aided with subsidies and
decrease the production of other crops such as vegetables and fruits. This
means that supply of vegetables and fruits would decrease, leading to higher
prices. Therefore, the overall price of groceries would increase, forcing the
consumers to use a greater portion of their income.
Third, subsidies do not help the economy in
rural areas. Most of the farming these days are done by machines rather than
manpower, so even if more land is cultivated, there is no need to hire more
workers. Therefore, employment opportunities of rural areas would not increase,
and the economy would not grow.
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