Biggest Farm Subsidies: Programs & Recipients
The largest farm subsidy programs and the top recipients. See where the money goes — from $147.29B across 157 USDA programs.
The Short Answer
The Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) is the single biggest program at $15.72B. The biggest recipient is Florida Dept Of Emergency Management with $346.6M total. The top 15 programs account for over 85% of all spending.
Top 15 Biggest Programs
These 15 programs account for the vast majority of USDA farm subsidy spending:
CRP Annual Rental
Pays landowners annual rent to keep environmentally sensitive cropland out of production.
CFAP Round 2
COVID-era Coronavirus Food Assistance Program providing direct payments to farmers affected by the pandemic.
Price Loss Coverage Program
Pays farmers when crop prices fall below a statutory reference price.
Market Facilitation Program 2019
Trade war bailout payments to offset losses from U.S.-China tariffs on non-specialty crops.
Emergency Commodity Assistance Program
Emergency payments to commodity producers facing market disruptions.
Agriculture Risk Coverage (County)
Revenue protection that pays when county crop revenue falls below a benchmark.
Market Facilitation Program (Crops)
Direct payments to crop farmers impacted by retaliatory tariffs during the 2018-2019 trade war.
Livestock Forage Program
Drought relief for ranchers who graze livestock on drought-affected pasture or rangeland.
Emergency Relief Program
Emergency payments for non-specialty crop losses from natural disasters.
CFAP CARES Act
CARES Act funding for agricultural producers impacted by COVID-19 market disruptions.
Supp Disaster Relief Non-Spec Crops 1
Supplemental disaster payments for non-specialty crop producers affected by qualifying disasters.
Cfapcccca
Additional CFAP payments under the CCC Charter Act for pandemic-affected producers.
Cfap3 — Tup
Third round of CFAP payments for producers who had not yet received pandemic assistance.
Whip Plus 3 Assistance
Wildfire and Hurricane Indemnity Program payments for disaster-affected producers.
Dairy Margin Coverage
Insurance-like program that pays dairy farmers when milk margins fall below a coverage level.
Top 15 Biggest Recipients
These individuals and entities received the most in total farm subsidy payments:
| # | Recipient | Location | Total | Payments |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Florida Dept Of Emergency Management | Tallahassee, FL | $346.6M | 6 |
| 2 | American Crystal Sugar Co | Moorhead, MN | $82.3M | 1 |
| 3 | Cotton Council International | Washington, DC | $69.3M | 66 |
| 4 | The Western Sugar Cooperative | Denver, CO | $69.2M | 1 |
| 5 | Us Meat Export Federation | Denver, CO | $66.8M | 81 |
| 6 | Southern Minnesota Beet Sugar Cooperative | Renville, MN | $52.8M | 1 |
| 7 | Food Export Association Of The Midwest Usa | Chicago, IL | $47.2M | 556 |
| 8 | Minn-Dak Farmers Cooperative | Wahpeton, ND | $46.4M | 1 |
| 9 | Agheritage | Stuttgart, AR | $45.1M | 5,133 |
| 10 | Food Export Usa Northeast | Philadelphia, PA | $40.2M | 316 |
| 11 | Us Grains Council | Washington, DC | $37.9M | 125 |
| 12 | Western Us Agriculture | Vancouver, WA | $37.0M | 1,049 |
| 13 | Wine Institute | San Francisco, CA | $32.2M | 177 |
| 14 | Southern Us Trade Association | New Orleans, LA | $30.7M | 434 |
| 15 | Agrifund Llc | Amarillo, TX | $28.9M | 2,391 |
What These Numbers Tell Us
The dominance of CRP, CFAP, and trade war programs at the top of the list reflects a fundamental shift in farm subsidies. Traditional commodity programs like Price Loss Coverage and ARC-County — the programs most people think of as “farm subsidies” — are now overshadowed by conservation, emergency, and one-time relief programs.
Three of the top five programs didn't exist before 2018. The Market Facilitation Program and CFAP programs were created as emergency responses, yet they distributed more money than decades-old commodity programs.
For a deeper look at who benefits most, see our entity types breakdown and concentration analysis.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the biggest farm subsidy program?
The Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) is the largest at $15.72B, paying landowners to keep environmentally sensitive cropland out of production. It's followed by CFAP (COVID relief) and Price Loss Coverage.
Who is the biggest farm subsidy recipient?
The largest recipient in our database is Florida Dept Of Emergency Management in Tallahassee, FL, who received $346.6M across 6 payments.
What crops get the most subsidies?
Corn, soybeans, wheat, cotton, and rice receive the most commodity subsidies through Price Loss Coverage and Agricultural Risk Coverage. However, the largest overall programs (CRP, CFAP, trade war bailouts) aren't crop-specific.