Crop Insurance Basics
History of Crop Insurance
Congress first authorized Federal crop insurance in the 1930s along with other initiatives to help agriculture recover from the combined effects of the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl. The Federal Crop Insurance Corporation (FCIC) was created in 1938 to carry out the program.
How the Crop Insurance Program Works
A crop insurance contract is a commitment between insured farmers and their insurance providers. Either party has the right to cancel or terminate the contract at the end of each crop year. Unless the contract is canceled, it is normally automatically renewed the next year.
The Crop Insurance Cycle
The Insurance Cycle begins each year with the insurance offer. Actuarial documents are published annually by the Risk Management Agency (RMA). The actuarial documents list the plan of insurance, crop, type, variety, and practice that may be insured in a state and county, and show the amounts of insurance, available insurance options, levels of coverage, price elections, applicable premium rates, and subsidy amounts.
Overview of Crop Insurance Policies
Buying a crop insurance policy is one risk management option. Producers should always carefully consider how a policy will work in conjunction with their other risk management strategies to insure the best possible outcome each crop year.
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Crop Insurance 101
The Crop Insurance Working Group has prepared 4 one-pagers addressing controversial topics. They are good sources of information.