Program Trends
How farm subsidy spending has shifted over time — from traditional commodity programs to emergency disaster payments.
Total All Years
$145.86B
Peak Year
2020
$38.73B
Since 2020
$83.58B
Total Farm Subsidy Spending by Year
Number of Payments by Year
Key Findings
🔑 The Emergency Spending Era
Recent years have been dominated by emergency and disaster programs — CFAP, MFP, and supplemental disaster relief — that dwarf traditional commodity support in many years.
What Drove the Changes
- 2018-2019: Market Facilitation Program (MFP) — trade war payments to offset tariff impacts
- 2020-2021: Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP) — pandemic emergency payments
- 2022-2024: Supplemental disaster relief — extreme weather events
- Traditional programs like CRP annual rental and ARC/PLC remain steady but are increasingly overshadowed
The Shift from Predictable to Emergency
Farm subsidies used to be relatively predictable — commodity price supports, conservation rentals, and crop insurance. The post-2018 era has been defined by massive one-time emergency programs, making total spending far more volatile and harder to budget.