Most farm subsidies go to substantial and successful operations and provide little support for the farms they were once intended to benefit. Many of the programs create barriers to more efficient agriculture in the United States, interfere with international trade and have adverse effects on farmers in developing countries. The American Boondoggle series is an AEI project that reviews the implications of important basic facts and analyses as guidance for the 2012 Farm Bill.
| American Boondoggle Fixing the 2012 Farm Bill by Barry K. Goodwin, Vincent H. Smith and Daniel A. Sumner |
Premium Payments Why Crop Insurance Costs Too Much by Vincent H. Smith |
| We’re not in Kansas Anymore Is There Any Case for Ag Subsidies? by Barry K. Goodwin |
For Want of a Nail The Case for Increased Agricultural R&D Spending by Philip G. Pardey and Julian M. Alston |
| Corn Belt Moonshine The Costs and Benefits of US Ethanol Subsidies by Christopher R. Knittel |
Milking Consumers and Taxpayers The Folly of US Dairy Policy by Joseph V. Balagtas |
| Something for Nothing? Direct Payments and Title I Farm Programs by Bruce A. Babcock |
Sweets for the Sweet The Costly Benefits of the US Sugar Program by Michael K. Wohlgenant |
| Picking on the Poor How US Agricultural Policy Hurts the Developing World by Daniel A. Sumner |
Market Structure and Competition in the US Food Industries Implications for the 2012 Farm Bill by Tina L. Saitone and Richard J. Sexton |
| Stuck in the Mud How Farm Policy Undermines Free Trade by Tim Josling |
US Food and Nutrition Programs Costs, Effectiveness and Impact on Obesity by Julian M. Alston |
| Conserving our Future How to Reform Title II of the Farm Bill by Tomislav Vukina |
The ACRE Program A Disaster in Waiting by Barry K. Goodwin and Vincent H. Smith |
| Agricultural Disaster Aid Programs A SURE Invitation to Wasteful Spending by Myles Watts and Anton Bekkerman |
Field of Schemes The Taxpayer and Economic Welfare Costs of Shallow-Loss Farming Programs by Vincent H. Smith, Bruce A. Babcock and Barry K. Goodwin |