It would be nice to talk about the great drought of 2012 in the past tense, but unfortunately, the entire state of Missouri remains in drought.

But if Missouri’s farmers hadn’t purchased a crop insurance policy last year — as most do every year — they could have lost more than their crops. They could have lost their farms, or their life savings, which is why crop insurance has become the primary risk management tool for farmers across the country.

Crop insurance is a modern-hybrid risk management tool. It’s a public-private partnership whereby farmers purchase insurance — partially underwritten by the federal government — to cover crop losses. Policies are sold, serviced and delivered by the private sector, and when disaster strikes, the…