Open AccessThe Fat of the Land: Do Agricultural Subsidies Foster Poor Health?
Author(s) -
Scott Fields
Publication year - 2004
Publication title -
environmental health perspectives
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.257
H-Index - 282
eISSN - 1552-9924
pISSN - 0091-6765
DOI - 10.1289/ehp.112-a820
Subject(s) - subsidy , agriculture , agricultural economics , unintended consequences , business , obesity , economic growth , public health , political science , economics , medicine , geography , market economy , archaeology , nursing , law
Since the 1920s, American farmers have received various forms of federal support in an effort to keep farmers farming and provide Americans with an affordable, stable food supply. Wheat, soybeans, and especially corn are currently the most highly subsidized crops; products made from these crops, including high-fructose corn syrup and hydrogenated fats, have flooded the market as cheap means for making foods tastier, though not healthier. Now critics are asking whether subsidies for these crops are actually driving the U.S. epidemic of obesity.