Reply #3: As he says, the low cost of food is the biggest challenge to small farms

[bhikkhu]

In spite of perceived inflation and how hard it is to make ends meet, the cost of food as a percentage of income is still at historic lows - and those are historic lows anywhere in human history you want to look, thanks to modern industrial agriculture. Not that I'm a fan of Monsanto or mechanization, but its a good overall policy to acknowledge reality.