Industrializing the Corn BeltFrom the late 1940s to the early 1970s, farmers in the Corn Belt transformed their region into a new, industrial powerhouse of large scale production, mechanization, specialization, and efficiency. Many farm experts and implement manufacturers had urged farmers in this direction for decades, but it was the persistent labor shortage and cost price squeeze following WWII that prompted farmers to pave the way to industrializing agriculture. Anderson