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"Think of trying to live today on the income you had 15 years ago." That's how well Chris Hurt, an agriculture expert, describes the plight of American farmers today.
The uneven economy that has emerged over the last decade, combined with unequal access to health care in rural areas, has had a severe impact on people who grow American food. Recent data show how much. Farmers die by suicide at a higher rate than any other occupational group, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The suicide rate for agriculture, fishing and forestry is 84.5 per 100,000 population, more than five times that of the population as a whole. It's even like the whole country has seen an increase in suicide rates over the past 30 years.
The CDC study comes with a few caveats. He examined workers from more than 17 different states, but he ruled out some large agricultural states, such as Iowa. And the occupational category that includes these workers includes a small number of workers from related occupational groups, such as fishing and forestry. (However, agricultural workers constitute the vast majority of the "agriculture, fishing and forestry" occupational group.)
However, the figures from the CDC study reflect other recent results. Suicide rates have risen fastest, and are highest, in rural areas, the CDC found in a different study released earlier this month. Other countries have also seen this problem – including India, where 60,000 farmer suicides have been linked to climate change.
In the United States, many advocates of long-standing farms say that today's crisis mirrors that which occurred in the 1980s, when many American farmers struggled economically, with a spike accompanying suicides among farmers.
"The agricultural crisis has been so bad, there has been a terrible epidemic of suicide and depression," said Jennifer Fahy, director of communications at Farm Aid, a group founded in 1985 that advocates on behalf of farmers. Today, she said, "I think it is worse."
"We hear farmers on our hotline that the stress of farmers is extremely high," said Fahy. "Whenever there is more uncertainty around the problems related to the agricultural economy, there is another day where the phones sound like crazy."
Finance is a major reason. Since 2013, farm incomes have steadily declined, according to the US Department of Agriculture. This year, average farm income is expected to be 35% below its 2013 level
"The current incomes we've seen over the last three years … have been pretty much like the farm incomes of the turn of the century," said Hurt, professor of agricultural economics at Purdue University. in Indiana.
Farmers are also at the mercy of elements beyond their direct control, extreme weather events that threaten crops at commodity prices that offer less for agricultural products than it costs to produce them.
"We've been talking to dairy farmers who are losing money on every pound of milk that they sell," said Alana Knudson, co-director of the Walsh Rural Health Analysis Center. 39, University of Chicago.
While America's trading partners are hitting tariffs on US crops, these prices should still be undermined. Meanwhile, the gradual rise in the Federal Reserve's interest rates threatens the funding of many small farms.
"Many of our farmers take out operating loans to buy seeds, fertilizer and sprays. As we study rising interest rates, this will exacerbate financial vulnerability, "Knudson said.
Unreliable finances are a major reason why three-quarters of farmers must rely on non-farm income, often from a second job. Access to Medicare is another.
Health care and mental health services can be critical, Knudson said, particularly in rural areas, where medical care may be scarce. The agriculture bill that passed in the House last week threatens to cancel it, she said, as it allows Medicare to sell diets. which exclude mental health coverage. The Senate version of the Farm Bill allocates $ 20 million to a program to connect farmers to behavioral health services.
These programs are even more critical today, said Fahy, because many state-funded programs that were created as a result of the 1980s agricultural crisis have been eradicated over the years. years. She pointed to Minnesota, where a suicide helpline closed earlier this month after a budget dispute between the legislature and the governor.
"The stress of farmers at the moment is extremely high, the agricultural economy is very precarious and should not improve in the near future," she said. However, she added, "When there are steps in place to tackle the root cause, which is usually financial and legal, the stress becomes manageable."
Because people can feel stigmatized about mental health issues, the conversation is importantsaid Doug Samuel, associate professor of psychology at Purdue University.
"When you look at someone who's worrying you," advised Samuel, "do not be afraid to ask, do not be afraid to listen."
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