Let's Talk Ag | Insurance

Let’s Talk Ag INSURANCE OPTIONS FOR PRODUCERS By Staci Emmn | Editorial

Farming and ranching was not for the faint of heart in 2022 as we begin to prepare for 2023.

Time just seems to fly by these days, but as I look back at what has happened in 2022, I am amazed by the resiliency of our Nevada producers. Producers have been hit by extreme heat, water shortages, lack of feed and/or feed resources, and wind. We also have lost some farmers and ranchers in the past couple of years due to illness.

I don’t know about you, but I am tired of the whole COVID situation, but I do recognize how it has impacted each and everyone one of us. How it has impacted how we do business? How it has impacted our access to supplies and parts? This situation, combined with inflation and increases in interest rates, makes for tough times. My life has certainly changed in 2022. My work life is more focused on recruiting and retaining staff, and providing direction to implement education programs. My home life has been a little more difficult with trying to keep the family cows and calves alive in heat, dry and windy conditions; growing enough hay to feed cows with limited irrigation; and hoping the markets are decent this next year. My father’s life has been about his hay crops and to get everything he can in the stack before it gets rained on or blown away. When you merge the two of us together, it is always a discussion of hay prices, are the cows now costing too much money, and how are we going to move forward. Does the family continue to diversify between hay and cattle to remain solvent? I like the cows and my father is a hay guy, so you can imagine how this discussion are going this year. But, I don’t think we are alone in these discussions. It is tough out there right now, and if producers make it through this year, will they make it through next year? How long can we survive drought, dynamic prices in cattle, and high input costs? I say this every year and producers continue to survive. The one thing I suggest as we enter fall, is to encourage producers to look at insurance programs for 2023 in their operations. There are some deadlines for insurance coming up quickly. For example, if you have not signed up for the Pasture, Rangeland and Forage (PRF) program, the deadline is November 15, 2002. This is a little over a month away, and there are other USDA, Risk Management Agency insurance programs, including the ability to insure your income in the WholeFarm insurance product. There are also insurance programs through Farm Service Agency (FSA) that are available. It is always a good idea to stop in your local FSA office or to pay attention to what programs are currently available or are going to be released.

USDA, Risk Management Agency programs are a little more difficult to identify, but are available on their website. For these programs, you have to find an insurance agent that has the ability to sell you the insurance. I would suggest you work with an agent that can show you the historic data on how the insurance program has performed over the last several years. You want some agricultural experience when buying your insurance.

I also encourage producers to look at ways to improve production or restructure if they can. Our production environments are so different now, especially with all this focus on water, or the lack of it. Sometimes, I feel that the industry is being boxed in from every direction. What I need to remember is that producers are resilient, they are smart, they know their business, and they will find ways to adapt to changing environments.

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