Harvest Updates
RMA Offers Guidance on Drought and Prevented Planting of Fall Crops
Wed, 28 Sep 2011 05:44:47 CDT
The USDA 's Risk Management Agency has put in place some guidelines regarding the exceptional drought that the southern great plains is experiencing and the fall planting of canola and wheat into soil that may be too dry for germination.
RMA has issued a backgrounder to reinsurers in several states about the drought and fall planting in regards to crop insurance.
The background memo established what the issue was - "The 2012 fall crop planting season is upon us and a large portion of the area in which fall wheat and canola can be planted is still under extraordinary drought conditions. Questions and concerns have recently been expressed about existing policy and procedural applications as they apply to specific issues directly related to this drought. This memorandum is being issued in response to some of those issues based on current conditions as they may impact fall or spring crop planting decisions but also to provide information in order to avoid unintended consequences for spring crop insurability."
Specifically- wheat and canola producers may have the chance to make a claim under the prevented planting clause of their crop insurance- if the soil is too dry for germination. The memo says "The area that is prevented from being planted has insufficient soil moisture for germination of seed or progress toward crop maturity due to a prolonged period of dry weather. The documentation for a prolonged period of dry weather must be verifiable using information collected by sources whose business it is to record and study the weather, including, but not limited to, local weather reporting stations of the National Weather Service."
Most certainly, check with your local crop insurance agent before making any final decisions on not planting either canola or wheat here in the fall of 2011.
We have the full four page memo- which also details the impact of not seeding in the fall and then wanting to apply for crop insurance in the spring for a spring planted crop. Click on the PDF file below to open up the file and review the background information on this issue.
00102_fallplanting-drought.pdf
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