美国农民处境艰难，政府却不关注

试想一下，如果有一种计算机病毒消减了苹果、谷歌和Facebook的半数产能，或者华尔街的银行家们眼睁睁地看着一个季度的获利付之东流，那肯定是轰动全美国的大新闻，当局也会迅速采取政治行动。然而，这正是美国农民所面临的处境，却未被足够的重视。

美国的农民有着自己的骄傲和谦逊的品格，通常不愿意为自己发声，但现在他们正处于极端困难的时期，动荡的市场和自然灾害让美国农民的境遇雪上加霜。由于大宗商品价格持续走低，2018年农业收入的中位数跌至负的1,500美元，而2017年的平均农业收入为43,000美元。在美国中西部农业州，2018年依据《美国破产法第12章》申请破产的案例已经升至十年来的最高水平，而此前这些州的农产品的销售额能够占到全美的近一半。

接着是中西部地区遭遇洪涝灾害。由于今年降雨过多、土地浸水，农民播种的时间大大延迟，随着种植期的结束，有的农民甚至得考虑今年是否要种植农作物。截至6月9日，美国大豆产量最高的几个州，仅有60%的大豆田种上了大豆，而往年这个时候，这个数字通常是90%。在玉米的高产州，往年这个时候玉米可以达到100%的种植，而今年只有83%。

即便在最好的年份，出现这种问题也是灾难性的。而现实情况是，农村地区的商业营收与农户的收入和生计息息相关，农民所处的乡村社区现在也是步履维艰。和我们一样，农民也希望自己的社区能够繁荣强大，可以拥有优质的教育、良好的医疗保健服务、先进的技术。然而这些领域现在也面临着诸多挑战。

据统计，约三分之一生活在农村的美国人和四分之一的农场主家中没有宽带，这使他们无法使用远程医疗和教育工具。为了让孩子可以完成作业，许多父母只能开车带孩子去当地的麦当劳上网。美国乡村地区还面临医生短缺的问题，自2010年以来，已经有超过100家乡村医院关闭，与此同时，农场生活带来的危险以及阿片危机造成悲剧也让农民备受煎熬。据美国农业局联合会（American Farm Bureau Federation）的一项调查显示：“四分之三（74%）的农民和农场工人受到或曾经受到阿片类药物滥用的直接影响，阿片成瘾者中要么是相识的人，要么就是自己的家人，有的是非法服用过阿片类药物，也有自身曾经阿片上瘾。”

Land O’Lakes公司是美国最大的农民业合作社之一，作为首席执行官，这些问题一直困扰着我。能够有机会与这些农户一起工作是我一生的荣幸，他们在困难面前表现出了巨大的韧性、乐观、创业精神和创新精神。96%的农场由家庭所有，他们明白行业具有周期性，也从未在挫折面前放弃。他们尽心打理着土地，希望能够将土地留给子孙后代。

但只靠农民解决不了现在的问题。国家必须倾听来自其中心地带的声音。我们不只要同情受灾社区的人，更要认识到我们是命运共同体，认识到农业是美国经济和安全的基石。美国城市生产的产品至关重要，但是如果没有兴旺的农村和农业经济，没有其为不断发展的人类社会提供丰富、平价的食物，美国的立国之柱必将崩塌。

我们要设法增加农村地区的投资，创造更多的就业机会。贸易是壮大农业经济的基石，Land O’Lakes公司继续敦促国会批准USMCA贸易协定，同时呼吁特朗普政府扩大对现有贸易伙伴的农产品出口。在当前的危机时刻，政策扶持对农民而言至关重要，2018年两党强有力的农业法案就是一个很好的例证，该法案改善了乳制品生产商的安全网络，并为农民制定了新的心理健康援助计划。

政府推出的政策还必须鼓励创新。这是Land O’Lakes公司与其他农业公司支持公、私部门在美国农村地区扩大宽带覆盖的原因。也正为此，我们一直努力部署包括数字可持续发展平台在内的尖端农业技术，帮助农民更好地保护和利用其拥有的自然资源。

只有不到五分之一的美国人居住在农村地区，但他们占到了美国军人的44%。国家需要他们时，他们义无反顾，现在轮到我们给他们以回报了。（财富中文网）

本文作者贝斯·福特是Land O’Lakes, Inc.公司的总裁兼首席执行官。

译者：梁宇

审校：夏林

Imagine, if you can, a computer virus that cut the productivity of Apple, Google, and Facebook in half. Or try to imagine Wall Street’s investment bankers seeing a season’s worth of deals washed away. Such calamities would dominate our nation’s news and drive swift political action. Yet that is precisely what America’s farmers face right now. And, as a country, we aren’t paying nearly enough attention.

Farmers are generally too proud and humble to speak out, but the truth is we are living through an extremely difficult period of market turmoil and natural disasters. Due largely to sustained low commodity prices, average farm income in 2017 was $43,000, while the median farm income for 2018 was negative $1,500. In 2018, Chapter 12 bankruptcies in the farm states across the Midwest that are responsible for nearly half of all sales of U.S farm products rose to the highest level in a decade.

And then the floods came to the Midwest. Farmers have been significantly delayed in their planting this year due to rain and soggy ground, and as the planting window closes, some will have to make a decision about whether to plant a crop this year at all. As of June 9, just 60% of America’s soybean acres had been planted in our highest-producing states, compared with nearly 90% typically planted by this time of year. And just 83% of the corn crop is in the ground in the most productive states, a number that should be pushing 100%.

These disasters would be catastrophic at the best of times. But the fact is the rural communities in which our farmers operate are also struggling because local businesses’ revenue and incomes are tied to farmers’ incomes and livelihoods. Farmers and rural families want the same things for their communities that we all do: access to quality education, health care, and technology, and strong local communities. There are challenges in these areas, as well.

Roughly one in three rural Americans, and one in four farmers, are without broadband access, cutting them off from services like telemedicine and educational tools. Many parents have to drive to the local McDonald’s so their kids can get Internet access to finish homework. Rural America faces a shortage of doctors—more than 100 rural hospitals have closed since 2010—even as they endure the regular dangers of farm life and the rolling tragedy of an opioid crisis. “Three in four farmers and farm workers (74%) are or have been directly impacted by opioid abuse, either by knowing someone, having a family member addicted, having taken an illegal opioid or having dealt with addiction themselves,” according to a survey from the American Farm Bureau Federation.

As the CEO of Land O’Lakes, one of the country’s largest farmer- and retail-member-owned cooperatives, I see these realities all the time. It is the privilege of my life to work with these families who in the face of such hardship demonstrate endless resilience, optimism, entrepreneurship, and innovation. Ninety-six percent of farms are family-owned. These are people who understand the cyclical nature of the industry and don’t give up in the face of setbacks. They protect and care for the land they want to pass on to their children.

But it’s not enough to count on farmers to tough it out. America needs to start listening to the voices of the heartland. It’s not just about feeling empathy for flood-ravaged communities. It is about recognizing our shared destiny. It is about remembering that agriculture is the bedrock of our economy and security. The products of urban America are essential. But without a thriving rural and farm economy producing abundant, affordable food for a growing planet, a foundational pillar of our strength as a country will collapse.

We need to look for ways to drive more investment and job creation in rural areas. For example, because trade is a cornerstone of a strong agricultural economy, Land O’Lakes continues to urge Congress to approve the USMCA trade agreement, while calling on the Trump administration to expand exports with existing trade partners. Policy is critical to help farmers at a time of crisis, a fact reflected in a strong bipartisan 2018 farm bill that improved the safety net for dairy producers and created new mental health assistance programs for farmers.

Policy must also be a catalyst for innovation. That’s why Land O’Lakes and other agricultural companies have supported public and private efforts to expand high-speed broadband access in rural America. And it’s why we’ve striven to deploy cutting-edge ag tech such as digital sustainability platforms to help farmers better safeguard and utilize their natural resources.

Fewer than one in five Americans live in rural areas, but they represent 44% of those serving in our military. When we need them, they stand up. Now it’s our turn to get on our feet.

Beth Ford is the president and CEO of Land O’Lakes, Inc.