You might want to educate yourself about the industry that you are supposed to be in, before you throw around invectives. Our banker called back today to say that our numbers look "great"...and they do, comparatively. Those numbers are typical, not an anomaly.
The fact is, agriculture today is dominated by large co-op's
What? Where did you come up with that little gem? We are fairly large farmers, in "the" farm state...the land is being farmed by individual farmers.
We've had to do this to remain competitive.
"We" who? We are net exporters of most commodities. "We" have had to do this to be competitive with "whom?" You are assuming a "free" market, which we do not have. The Board of Trade is a ridiculous, outdated notion that serves as nothing but a price-fixing operation. It was useful when my Great-Grandpa traveled to Chicago to sell cattle for 50 or so farmers in our area...in 1910...before the had PHONES. Get rid of the Board of Trade; let us negotiate prices for our products with the buyers of our products...THEN you can get rid of subsidies.
I do have to be a little careful what I say in that regard, however. We have no shortage of greedy politicians and businessmen who would actually be so shortsighted as to trust our food supply to some third-world country. They've done it with oil, and that's really worked out well.
So, you're in the food business.
No, I'm in the "grow your food" business. I've spent years in the building materials manufacturing & distribution business. Every company I've worked for has had a 5% or less net profit margin...all were successful. All were able to sell their products on the open market, for a price which was, amazingly, not manipulated to be lower than production cost.
If food costs had kept up with wages and inflation....and if they were suddenly adjusted tomorrow...people would come unglued. To the extent that they have gone up, it certainly isn't the farmer who is benefiting. Our input costs have soared, our cost of living has soared, and we are being paid 1975 prices. To be sure, we have become more efficient, but cannot begin to offset this:
Some commodity charts from the 1970's through 1999.
http://www.ifbf.org/programs/commodity/pdf/eoa1.pdf#search='corn%20bushel%20price%201975'
I hope that I'll be able to purchase a new vehicle soon at the $5,000 sticker-price that prevailed back then.
If I read your post correctly you said the owners of your company are working 80 hours a week and are earning $20k a year? You then asked me if I would do this. No, I wouldn't. I'd sell my business if I could and move on to other, more rewarding work. But hey, to each his own. If your banker is telling you this kind of performance is good then maybe the company has value and can be sold for a good profit. If your numbers are good then stop whining.
...the land is being farmed by individual farmers.
Yes, sole proprietorships still account for the largest percentage of total farms. Their share of farm product sales is shrinking however. The move to larger farming to achieve economies of scale will continue. The large co-op's will continue to use their welfare to undercut and buy up smaller operations. I am happy to hear that, IYO, the individual farmer is still doing well despite all the claims to the contrary.
"We" have had to do this to be competitive with "whom?"
Foreign imports of agriculture products is not a threat to our domestic producers? Interesting. There are some on this thread claiming that foreign competition is wiping out our farmers.
Get rid of the Board of Trade; let us negotiate prices for our products with the buyers of our products...
Individual farmers negotiating their own deals with processors, distributors and retailers? Sounds very inefficient to me. Is the CBOT making all the money in the food business? Are they the ones responsible for turning $.30 of raw materials into a $3.00 box of cereal and earning obscene profits?
We have no shortage of greedy politicians and businessmen who would actually be so shortsighted as to trust our food supply to some third-world country.
But we are still net exporters of most commodities, right?
If food costs had kept up with wages and inflation....and if they were suddenly adjusted tomorrow...people would come unglued
I don't suppose productivity and competition had anything to do with food prices dropping as a percentage of the American consumers budget?
To the extent that they have gone up, it certainly isn't the farmer who is benefiting.
From my linked article, it says that as of 2001:
You can't tell us on one hand how well farms are doing and then tell us that farmers are not enjoying any benefit from their increased productivity. Clearly they are benefiting when they earn 17% more than the average American, enjoy a lower cost of living and possess twice the net worth. Like all Americans, their incomes and standard of living have increased dramatically since 1975. Things are more expensive now because things are better.