How Corporate Consolidation Has Impacted Small Farmers
June 30, 2026 | Source: Civil Eats | by Rebekah Alvey
Walk through most grocery stores in the United States and you’ll see dozens of choices in an aisle, from cereals to meats and snacks. But a closer looks shows fewer options than first appear.
“If you look, it’s the same company. They just make us want to think we have choices,” said Joe Maxwell, president of Farm Action Fund. This “illusion of choice,” as Maxwell calls it, is a result of consolidation in the food and agriculture space.
This consolidation adds to other economic challenges for smaller farmers, and it can increase grocery prices for consumers. But how did this happen? The exact cause is a mix of policy choices, historic flashpoints, and pressures for farming operations to grow.
What Is Consolidation and Where Is It Happening?
Consolidation is the shift from smaller, often family-owned, operations to larger, corporate-owned enterprises. It represents a shift in the distribution of power from many small operations to a select few companies, creating near-monopolies that can undercut the competition. No corner of U.S. agriculture has been spared this process.