Crop Insurance Winter 2013

When all other things are equal; It’s the people that make a difference.

CROP INSURANCE

Mitzi Winder

Chris Dryer

Shelly Hartmann

Kristie Hulet

Shane Albertson

Amber Hulet

Your FCS Financial Crop Insurance Team

Corey Neill

Jonni Creger

Maureen Cope

David Niederjohn

Lisa Hyde

Jeff Rhode

Kathy Bauer

Nick Barron

Jessica Hamill

Wendy Howell

Jade Kahre

ready with the expertise you need to make sound decisions.

Dan Rhoades

Becca White

Hailey Rook

Toni Johnson

By Mark Parker

PROTECTING A BIG INVESTMENT With his own elevator and 220,000 bushels of storage capacity, Chris Vogel is blessed with plenty of space for the corn and soybeans he raises near Marshall.

Harvesting 1,200 acres of cropland, ample storage helps speed up harvest and enhances marketing flexibility. Some years, though, it’s not a matter of having enough space to put the corn and soybeans he raises with his father, Mike, and son, Shawn.

It’s a matter of producing enough to remain economically viable in a risk-filled industry that demands major input investments.

“In 2012, I was pretty thankful for crop insurance,” Chris says. “Our corn averaged around 65 bushels per acre and normal for us is about 170.

Without crop insurance it would have been a pretty big setback.”

Although Chris has been a loan customer for several years, that was his first year as an FCS Financial crop insurance customer. The Vogels were already financial customers and having their crop insurance in the same place made sense to Chris.

“They’re my lender and the people there are great,” he says. “They always take good care of me and my crop insurance agent, David Niederjohn, couldn’t be more helpful. He knows what he’s doing and if he thinks there’s something better for our operation, he lets us know.”

Crop insurance is as much a tool for the Vogel farming operation as the RTK satellite navigation that directs the mapping, auto-steer and automatic shut-offs the family employs to enhance production and profitability.

With good soil, great storage capability and plenty of farming experience contributing to successful crop production, Chris Vogel isn’t about to jeopardize his investment. And with crop insurance from FCS Financial, he can be sure that when Mother Nature doesn’t cooperate, he’ll be around to take advantage of her better days.

GOOD HELP, GOOD SERVICE It felt pretty good getting the last of the soybeans harvested just ahead of a winter storm closing in on Scho-Me Farms.

Monett dairyman Darron Schoen raises row crops and plenty of forage, letting his Holsteins convert most of it into revenue. He doesn’t, however do it all by himself.

“I have really fantastic help,” he says.

That includes his wife, Miandra; his dad, Edgar; and his mom, Glenda.

“They’re all great,” he says. “I couldn’t do it without them. And we have the best two employees handling the milking that we’ve ever had. I’m pretty lucky.”

THE ASSET OF FINANCIAL STABILITY Darrell Coffman is conservative by nature — and conservative by profession.

That’s the way it has to be when you’re competing for crop ground in the shadow of Kansas City, the Lee’s Summit farmer says.

“I have to keep my expenses down,” Coffman explains. “All of my ground is rented and a lot of it has been or will be developed. One piece was 490 acres and now it’s down to 25 — houses and banks where I used to grow corn.”

Unwilling to pay some of the pricier rents, Coffman gets fields that are often small and spread-out. Despite their inconvenience, however, they produce good crops for a farmer willing to be on the move.

Coffman is realistic about his cropping practices, choosing solid, consistent production over aiming for the fences.

“If you’re aiming for a homerun, you’re going to strike out sometimes,” he observes. “My yield goals are realistic and I fertilize for those realistic goals. At the same time, I’m going to make sure I manage the crop so I can consistently achieve their potential.”

Financial stability is as important as production consistency and that’s where crop insurance plays a big role.

“I don’t like to collect on crop insurance but I want that safety net,” he says. “I’m not looking to make money on it but it’s important to cover my expenses.”

Like any farmer, Coffman has plenty of crop insurance sources from which to choose but he’s sold on FCS Financial.

“My agent — Wendy Howell at the Harrisonville office — is really knowledgeable and she’d bend over backward to help me,” Coffman concludes. “I may be old-fashioned but customer service really counts with me.”

Schoen’s luck doesn’t always hold up with the weather, though. Controlling factors like rations, herd health and crop fertility is one thing.

What falls — or doesn’t fall — from the sky is another matter.

Insuring crops with FCS Financial is especially important to the family because crop losses echo through the operation all the way to the milk check.

“Cutting a failed crop for forage may seem like a good deal but, in a drought, that forage is going to be drastically reduced in both tonnage and quality,” Darron says. “And that has a big impact on our milk production.”

Darron sees the importance of crop insurance as stretching well beyond his fencelines.

“People criticize the program but if they think food prices are high now, eliminate crop insurance and see what happens when American farmers lose solvency,” he says.

Darron credits his FCS Financial professional, Lisa Hyde, with providing the service he needs to make the most of crop coverage.

“Lisa’s knowledgeable and helpful,” he concludes. “The thing I like about her is that if I ask a question she can’t answer right away, she’ll get an answer for me. I appreciate the good service.”

GROWING A FARMING LEGACY Three generations of Hannahs grow corn and soybeans near Bolckow in northwest Missouri. Delvon has been at it for 45 years. His father, Veldron, at age 90, still comes out to lend a hand. And Delvon’s son, Josh, has returned to the farm to continue the family’s growing legacy.

The operation includes hill ground, bottom ground, seepy soils and some that dry out quicker than they’d prefer. And then there are the fields along the Platte River that can sometimes spill over to claim a portion of the Hannah’s crops.

A no-till strategy saves time, fuel and machinery while delivering good yields. Managed well, the land can be very productive. But with ever-growing input investments, the stakes are too high not to manage weather-related risks.

To help accomplish that, the Hannahs rely on FCS Financial and crop insurance professional Corey Neill.

“Corey keeps us ahead of all the changes in crop insurance,” Delvon says. “He’s good to deal with, like all the FCS Financial people. He’ll come out to the farm and help make the right coverage choices for us. This is our third year of having our crop insurance through them and we had never had that kind of service before.”

Like most farmers, the Hannahs have plenty to keep up with in terms of hybrids, herbicides, equipment and the constantly evolving management demanded by today’s agriculture.

Tapping into FCS Financial expertise for crop insurance as well as financing, helps them concentrate on what they do best — grow crops.

“FCS Financial helped me get started in farming a long time ago,” Delvon observes. “Now I count on them to help all of us keep farming.”

Contact an FCS Financial Crop Insurance team member today to learn more about our risk management products. Remember March 15 is the last day to sign up for spring crop insurance and to make any changes to existing coverage. Call 1-800-444-3276, visit myfcsfinancial.com or stop by an FCS Financial office, and let us put our experience to work for you.

Multi-Peril Crop Insurance • Yield Protection/Actual Production History • Revenue Protection • Revenue Protection with Harvest Price Exclusion

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