For growers and producers, risk management is an essential part of success and profitability. Unfortunately, the weather is not always on our side and can derail even the most perfectly laid plans. Weather conditions like heavy rainfall, flooding, and extreme weather conditions can delay or prevent planting by the final planting date. This is an instance of prevented planting.
What is prevented planting?
Prevented planting is when adverse weather makes it impossible to plant or delays your planting beyond your policy’s final planting date. Prevented plantings coverage is included for most crop insurance policies and insures against events like floods, hurricanes, excess rain and other conditions.
Why is coverage for prevented plantings important?
Prevented planting coverage offers farmers protection against weather conditions that delay or prevent them from planting crops by the final planting date.
How do payments for prevented plantings work?
When prevented plantings are deemed eligible for coverage, payments are made to the affected producer. Payment amounts depend on your specific multi-peril crop insurance policy.
USDA Changes to Prevented Planting Coverage In 2020
In 2020, Risk Management Agency (RMA) of the United States Department of Agriculture announced changes to the Prevented Planting Program, including:
- Expanding the “1 in 4” requirement to producers nationwide, not just those located within the Prairie Pothole National Priority Area.
- Creating an exception that lets producers receive a prevented planting payment for a different crop if they can show intent to plant it.
- Allowing acreage planted with an uninsured crop, after an eligible crop fails in the same crop year, to not be subtracted from eligible acreage.
- Extending the timeframe for which intended acreage reports can establish prevented-planting acreage for producers in a new county. An intended acreage report can now establish a producer’s prevented-plantings acreage in a new county for two years, not one.
For spring crops, the new “1 in 4” requirement is effective in 2021. For other crops, the “1 in 4” requirement is effective beginning with the 2022 crop year. Prevented-planting-eligible acreage is planted, insured, harvested, or has been adjusted due to eligible loss causes within 1 of the 4 preceding years.
Talk with one of our crop insurance agents today!
At Crop Insurance by AMS, we’ve been grower-focused since our first day. We offer a variety of crop insurance services that help producers, farmers, and ranchers guard their revenue and livelihood against disaster. If you’d like to learn more, contact us today through our website or give us a call! We can’t wait to hear from you!
