Government subsidy

As I've said before, I'm making a U-pick. It just so happens that the book keeper at my work has a sister who has done the same thing in New York. We were discussing it, the various things that have worked for her sister, etc., when she said something very interesting. She said that whenever there is an early frost that hurts the apples the government comes in and buys them all. Subsidizing I suppose is the word? Anyway, she said that people still drive there to pick apples and are upset when they see apples on the trees that they can't pick because the government "bought" them. Also, the government apparently takes the apples away. I suppose I always figured if something happened and they couldn't be eaten by humans I'd simply use them as animal feed. Not being savy on government intervention in farming I'm wondering if I sign up as a farm enterprise will the government give me a choice to refuse their help? I suppose that seems like a stupid question but this is the government we are talking about.

It depends. For the most part, the federal government is an opt in setup. State and local can be tyrannical, often started with good intentions but with unintended consequences.

It could be the apples were about removing a pest vector, it could be a form of crop insurance. Permaculture has ways of dealing with it better, but that means everyone has to be responsible for themselves--and that is the hard part.

R Scott wrote:It depends. For the most part, the federal government is an opt in setup. State and local can be tyrannical, often started with good intentions but with unintended consequences.

It could be the apples were about removing a pest vector, it could be a form of crop insurance. Permaculture has ways of dealing with it better, but that means everyone has to be responsible for themselves--and that is the hard part.

Well the good news is that our local government doesn't even think it's possible to grow fruit here. So I doubt there is any regulation in place for it.

sounds sort of like a crop insurance thing to me. in a large fruit growing area this doesnt seem out of the ordinary - though i suspect fruit crop insurance premiums will be cost prohibitive in WY.

we have chosen not to enter into any govt programs/crop insurance - on our small scale it doesnt seem worth the hassle of keeping up with the paperwork (sometimes over a span of a few years) .

along with ones that fit our climate - we planted plants that should grow in a bit warmer and a bit cooler climate - that is our insurance

When I bought my farm, it had already been enrolled in the USDUH programs and it was a long process to get out.