Conspiracy Crop Dusting

Why the fuck would the government pay farmers to destroy crops?

Viral videos of farmers on tractors mowing down what appear to be perfectly good crops are everywhere on social media right now. They all follow a similar formula: a voice over or text explaining how the farmer is being paid by the US government to destroy their crops while the good ol’ farmer looks dejected but follows order. There is never an explanation as to why these crops are being destroyed but the lack of context doesn’t seem to slow the spread of these clips. Conspiracy theorists rushed to fill in the gaps in the comments- the government is creating an intentional food shortage. Because as we all know by now, the absence of evidence is not the evidence of absence.

Why this bizzarro Bread and Circuses would work is anyone’s guess but logic isn't valuable currency online- opinions are. We’ve even briefly touched on this bullshit before yet this weird lie keeps making the rounds. So let’s dive head first into this fucking nonsense.

Despite the many recent videos, this whole intentional food shortage conspiracy actually started in the summer of 2021. Grocery shelves started looking bare around this time and idle minds got to work.

these farmers are using underpants gnome logic

We mostly have Tik-Tok’s algorithm to blame for the staying power of this conspiracy. Tik-Tok users try all kinds of methods to reach virality and garner attention- one of which is vague shitposting. Leaving unanswered questions encourages audiences to comment,share the content, and again, fill in the intentional gaps. After the video’s traffic plateaus you’ll usually find a ‘follow up’ video from the creator talking to camera something akin to “Hey guys, sooo I didn’t realize that video was going to blow up…” before explaining it was a joke, a misunderstanding, or nothing like how it was framed in their post. Farmers do it too. Unfortunately, this is an effective means of increasing engagement and followers. 

one farmer admitting it wasn’t real

Once this specific lie started getting legs, tons of videos popped up specifically linking crop destruction to food shortages like this one. But this isn’t just a Tiktok problem. Videos playing into the conspiracy have popped up on every platform. Even when the creator admits that it’s all a lie, the attention grabbing, algorithm-priming-title stays. Videos circulating Facebook contained edited footage of farmers ‘destroying’ their crops but were flagged for false information, eventually. 

We knew this whole thing sounded like bullshit but we went ahead and reached out to a spokesperson from the Farm Bureau about these conspiracy theories. Their response left no room for error:

“Farmers in the US are not being paid to destroy crops. The rumors were quickly debunked as ‘jokes’ by several people on social media. Early in the COVID pandemic, some farmers were forced to plow under crops and dump milk because restaurants and schools were ordered to shut down. That major disruption in demand left farmers with nowhere to sell their products.” 

So not only is this crop destruction panic just good ol’ fashion bullshit, it also has no historical precedent here in the US. The closest thing we found is a program where the federal government subsidizes property owned by farmers, specifically to not grow crops on at-risk land for anywhere from 10-15 years. 

Now why would the government pay farmers to leave land the fuck alone? Y’all remember The Dust Bowl? Did you even read The Grapes of Wrath? It was one of the worst man-made ecological disasters caused by a combination of over-farming and drought, which led to Congress passing The Soil Conservation Act. That’s the program we’re talking about where Uncle Sam tells farmers “hey, we’ll pay you to leave some of your land alone. Let those acres establish some roots and pollinate naturally.”. We’ve experienced dozens of droughts since the Dust Bowl and yet, no Dust Bowl sequel. So the program must be working. 

TLDR; the government isn’t paying farmers to destroy crops to force a food shortage. If anything, we’ve successfully fixed a lot of the holes in our food supply chain that were vulnerable at the start of the pandemic. AND ON TOP OF THAT just last year while this hoax was being circulated, Republicans voted to expand federal support to farmers while cutting benefits to hungry children. So if there is anything resembling a food shortage manufactured by the federal government in this country, it’s to keep poor kids hungry. 

This is the internet, a true wild west of information and disinformation alike. We know you guys are smart enough to not take advice from Tik Tok videos, especially if it sounds like bullshit but it’s worth setting the record straight. Especially if y’all are in our inbox asking us about it. For now let’s get back to using the internet for what it was intended for, sharing kickass recipes and wholesome animal content. 

Today Years Old @todayyearsoldig

Best thing I’ve learned this week is that seals do something called the “banana pose” when they feel safe and content.

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Matt + Michelle