Iowa Farm Family Faces Closure as Government Shutdown Blocks Aid

When record floods devastated Rock Valley, Iowa last June, Chelsie Ver Mulm frantically evacuated dozens of animals from her family’s Orange Creek Farms to safety. But the floodwaters that receded from her 10-acre property left behind a trail of destruction that may ultimately force the second-generation farmer to abandon her dream of feeding her community.

The disaster claimed over a dozen animals to stress and disease, destroyed equipment and pastures, and drove away customers who could no longer afford local food. Ver Mulm’s herd has shrunk from 40 cattle to just four as recovery costs mounted. After being repeatedly denied for USDA emergency loans due to bureaucratic hurdles, she submitted a final application for a Rural Development grant in April—her “last lifeline” to save the farm.

Now, more than a month into a government shutdown, that application sits in limbo along with thousands of others. The USDA has furloughed most of its workforce, leaving farmers across the country without access to critical support programs. While some county offices recently reopened with skeleton crews, the backlog threatens to create further delays even after the shutdown ends.

Ver Mulm has exhausted her savings and is living on credit cards as her farm teeters on the edge of insolvency. Her story illustrates how the combination of extreme weather events and political gridlock is devastating small agricultural operations nationwide. With SNAP benefits for 42 million Americans also at risk, the shutdown’s impact extends far beyond individual farms to threaten the entire food system that connects rural producers to consumers who depend on both local agriculture and federal nutrition assistance.