News

Agent emphasizes value of crop insurance as margins tighten

A crop insurance agent says the risk management tool is becoming increasingly important as farm incomes are expected to decline in 2023.

Lee Waters with Farm Credit Illinois tells Brownfield grain farmers have seen strong prices the last three years.

“I feel like a big risk we have going into 2023 is price decline. One of these days we are going to raise a national record corn crop and if that happens we have a lot of high input costs in our crop, and it’s not just yield that you are protecting- it’s revenue.”

He recommends keeping coverage levels comfortably high and considering private coverage options like hail insurance.

“That can include fire and lightning coverage. If your combine catches on fire and burns across your field, hail coverage is your coverage for that. There is also a stored grain endorsement, vandalism, and I highly recommend adding additional replant writers with your hail policy.”

Along with coverage selections, Waters says farmers also need to inform their agent of any business-related changes by the March 15^th sign-up deadline including marriage or divorce, changes to an LLC, or if they’re farming land in another county or state.

Waters reviews more risk management tips for 2023 in the latest Insider Look with Farm Credit Illinois on Brownfield.