By KEVIN O'HANLON, Associated Press Writer
GRAND ISLAND, Neb. (AP) - Husker Harvest Days is supposed to be a celebration of Nebraska's farm industry, but most farmers attending the event this year have little to smile about because of drought and low commodity prices.
"Farming has always had its ups and downs - and we're really having a down," said Loren Heil, who owns a cattle operation near Loup City.
Thousands of farmers and ranchers converged on Grand Island this week to attend seminars and talk to representatives from a myriad of companies that sell tractors, silos and other agricultural products.
The mood was hardly festive following news that federal subsidies to Nebraska farmers this year will nearly equal what producers can make on their own.
In other words, the day might soon come where the bulk of Nebraska's farm income will be in the form of federal subsidies, which hasn't happened since the early 1980s.
"The government steps in and gives us all this money, and all that does is makes it look good," said Brad Schwisow, 30, who raises corn, soybeans and milo in Saline County. "It doesn't fix anything."
Net farm income for Nebraska's farmers is estimated at $1.6 billion this year, while direct payments from the federal government are expected to hit at least $1.3 billion.
Stricken by drought, Nebraska's status as the nation's third largest corn-producing state is in jeopardy this fall. Nebraska's 1.03 billion bushel crop would be its smallest since 1995.
The government also projects corn prices to be below $1.70 a bushel for the first time since 1986.
A dismal Nebraska crop projection in the midst of expected record corn yields across the rest of the nation this year will lead even more farmers to leave the industry, said Chuck Hassebrook, with the Nebraska Center for Rural Affairs.
Some farmers blame the 1996 Freedom to Farm Act for part of agriculture's woes.
The law scaled back income-based subsidies, ended controls on planting and gave farmers a series of fixed annual payments. Critics say the fixed payments were insufficient when commodity prices fell sharply in 1998.
"This Freedom to Farm is kind of a joke," said Randy Meyer, 32, who grows corn and soybeans in Saline County. "We've been in it how many years? The prices aren't any better."
Others say the federal government has let large corporations stretch the limits of antitrust laws to the detriment of family farmers.
In 1985, for example, four companies controlled 39 percent of the U.S. cattle market. Today, four companies control 70 percent.
More than 60 percent of the flour milling and 80 percent of the soybean crushing also is controlled by four companies.
"I don't think it's going to get any better," said Joe Thramer, 45, who farms corn, millet and hay near Erickson in Wheeler County.
Despite the troubles, Thramer said he hasn't thought about leaving farming.
"I ain't got much of a choice," he said. "I can't sing and I can't dance.":
