Five years ago, I wrote publicly about my experience with clinical depression, something I had spent years managing quietly while building a career in a high-pressure, always-on environment.
At the time, sharing that felt risky. Vulnerability in professional spaces, especially in industries built on resilience and toughness, isn’t exactly rewarded. But I said it anyway, because I believed that if more of us spoke up, we could start to change how mental health is treated, especially in rural America.
We did start talking. But talking hasn’t been enough.
Today, the pressures facing farmers and ranchers, and frankly many of us working alongside them, are more intense, more constant, and less forgiving than they were five years ago. There is no off switch. Expectations are higher, margins are tighter, and the stress is relentless.
And yet, the systems meant to support mental health haven’t kept pace.
There are signs of progress. A recent national poll from the American Farm Bureau Federation shows that stigma around mental health in agriculture is beginning to ease. Farmers are more willing to talk about stress and seek help than they were just a few years ago.
That’s real progress, and it matters. But we cannot confuse a shift in conversation with a solution. Even as stigma declines, access to care remains deeply limited. In many rural communities, finding a mental health provider, let alone one who understands the realities of agriculture, is still incredibly difficult. For many, the combination of cost, distance and lingering stigma is enough to stop them from seeking help altogether.
At the same time, the underlying stressors haven’t improved, they’ve intensified.
Farmers are navigating rising input costs, crippling workforce shortages, regulatory uncertainty and volatile markets that can shift overnight. These aren’t abstract pressures. They are deeply personal, financial and existential, and they compound day after day.
We cannot continue to treat mental health as separate from these realities. It is directly tied to them.
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The good news is that policymakers are starting to pay attention.
The recently introduced bipartisan Agriculture Access to Addiction and Mental Health Care Act, led by Reps. Joe Neguse and Derrick Van Orden, is a clear signal that Congress is engaging. The bill takes an important step toward identifying gaps in access to mental health and addiction care for farmers and ranchers, something we urgently need to understand if we’re going to fix it.
That’s an important step forward. But just as greater awareness hasn’t solved the problem, recognition alone won’t either. If we are serious about supporting farmers, mental health cannot be treated as an optional add-on or a side conversation, it must be built into the core of how we approach agricultural policy.
That means:
- Expanding access to care in ways that actually work in rural communities.
- Embedding mental health resources into existing agricultural touchpoints, such as FSA county offices, extension services, and lending institutions.
- Designing programs that farmers will actually use, not just ones that look good on paper.
Right now, we have a disconnect. We have more awareness than ever before, but still not enough action where it counts.
I know how hard it is to carry mental health struggles while showing up every day, expected to perform, lead and deliver as if nothing is wrong. I cannot imagine doing so in a rural community where resources are scarce and asking for help still feels like a risk.
We’ve spent years trying to normalize the conversation. Now it’s time to normalize action.
Because if we continue to treat mental health as secondary, we are sending a clear message that the well-being of the people behind our food system is negotiable. It’s not.
And until our policies reflect that, we’re not just falling short, we’re choosing to.
Sara Neagu-Reed is the director of production and environmental policy at the International Fresh Produce Association and former member of the Farm State of Mind campaign led by American Farm Bureau Federation.
