The U.S. Department of Agriculture has now announced broader options for farmers and ranchers.
The USDA has now announced that it will continue with the implementation of the 2014 Farm Bill that are designed to increase the coverage options for crop insurance for farmers and ranchers.
Among the new provisions that is going to be added is the Supplemental Coverage Option (SCO).
That provision will be available through the federal crop insurance program and will be administered by the Risk Management Agency (RMA). It is expected to become effective during the 2015 season. According to Tom Vilsack, the current U.S. Agriculture Secretary and former governor of Iowa, “America’s agricultural producers work hard to produce a sufficient amount of safe and nutritious food for the country.”
The goal of increasing the available options is to ensure that crop insurance will be an effective risk management tool.
Vilsack went on to say that it is vital that farmers and ranchers have access to insurance coverage options that will allow them to manage risks in an effective way and to make certain that they will not lose everything should they be the victims of events that are entirely outside of their control.
He stated that “Following the 2014 Farm Bill signing, USDA has made it a priority to ensure the Supplemental Coverage Option was available to help farmers in this upcoming crop year.” Beyond adding additional options for farmers and ranchers, the 2014 Farm Bill will also be working to make it more affordable for these growers to be able to afford their crop policies.
The new Supplemental Coverage Option will be available in specific locations and for certain crops. Growers in selected counties will be able to apply if they will be growing cotton, corn, rice, grain sorghum, spring barley, soybeans, spring wheat or winter wheat.
The USDA is now encouraging farmers to communicate with their crop insurance agents so that they can find out whether or not they are eligible for this coverage. The RMA has intentions to one day broaden the availability of the SCO so that more counties and plants can be eligible.
