Agriculture Remains a Great Return on Investment
Tax season is finally over, and naturally many of us are thinking about how our checks to Uncle Sam will be spent in the upcoming year. Here’s a hint: Not very much will be going to the farm. In fact, for every $100 spent by the Federal government, less than 25 cents actually goes to […]
Farm Credit Services Report Touts Crop Insurance
Crop insurance saved nearly 21,000 jobs in four states during one of the worst droughts in two decades, according to a report from Farm Credit Services of America. The 20-page paper breaks down the history of the crop insurance program from the start in 1930s, with the Great Depression and Dust Bowl, to expansions in […]
An Introduction to Crop Insurance
Welcome to “What’s Cropping Up.” If you’re reading us for the first time, chances are good that you’re either a new Congressional staffer or a reporter that’s joining the ag policy beat. As such, we wanted to start with some of the basics. Of course, if you’re chomping at the bit to graduate from Crop […]
Insurance Basics: Skin in the Game
Crop insurance is arguably the first farm policy in history that is largely financed by the farmers who benefit from it. Unlike policies of the past, which were 100 percent backed by taxpayers, modern-day farm policy requires growers to take an active role in its funding – a concept sometimes called “skin in the game.” […]
“I’d rather not collect on crop insurance.”
“I like to think we are feeding the world.”
Mark Sherry, Washington Wheat Farmer
ICYMI: Maine farmers know crop diversity is key to success. Our farm policies should reflect that
Bangor Daily News December 13, 2016 “Diversify, diversify, diversify.” This is the mantra of most financial advisors—a popular approach to protect investors in the face of volatile market swings. The same strategy also has served agriculture—another unpredictable market-quite well. Here in Maine, we have established one of the most diverse agriculture “portfolios” in the nation. […]
Insurance Basics: Delivery Costs
Whenever a customer writes a premium check for an auto or home insurance product, part of that payment is allocated to servicing the policy. That is, insurance companies include an expense load in the premium for each policy beyond anticipated losses to offset overhead costs, such as staff salaries, agent commissions, adjusting losses, employee training, […]
“This is my livelihood. I love it!”
George Struthers farms 9,000 acres of wheat in the south central part of Washington. Crop insurance is very important to him as he farms land that has been in his family for generations.
