Where Credit is Due: Examining USDA Finance, the Farm Credit System, and Barriers to Local Wealth and Sustainability

An examination of credit barriers experienced by small farmers in Kentucky and coastal Georgia, with an emphasis on heirs’ property.

This research paper is a multi-modal examination of barriers experienced by small farmers in access to credit and financial services provided by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Farm Credit System (FCS). The authors focused on subregions of the U.S. characterized by widespread generational disadvantage, including African American communities in central Kentucky and coastal Georgia, as well as the predominantly white populations of the Appalachian coalfields in eastern Kentucky. This project seeks to: a) inform policy recommendations for the 2023 Farm Bill, USDA, and related federal entities by amplifying issues faced by socially disadvantaged farmers and landowners, and b) to co-produce knowledge and share resources with partnering communities and promote sustainable growth within those communities.

By LiKEN Knowledge, James Embry. Please credit: Betsy Taylor, et al. 2022. Where Credit is Due: Examining the USDA Finance Agencies and Barriers to Local Wealth and Sustainability.