crop insurance
Crop insurance a likely target for Obama budget cuts
The Obama administration seems sure to propose cuts in the federally subsidized crop insurance program in its final budget package, which will be released on Tuesday.
USDA punts cottonseed subsidy back to Congress
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack handed the question of a $1 billion a year cottonseed subsidy program back to Congress, telling lawmakers they hold the power to expand the farm program but USDA does not. In a novel proposal, the cotton industry asked that cottonseed be declared an oilseed and thus become eligible for the crop subsidies offered to grain and soybean growers.
Obama to ask for doubling of funds for USDA ag research program
After years of gradual increases in funding, the administration will seek $700 million for the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative in the fiscal year that begins on Oct. 1, said White House science advisor John Holdren.
New crop insurance provision will aid transition to organic farming
It takes three years for farmers to transition a farm from conventional agriculture to certified organic production, a substantial hurdle. To make the transition a bit easier, USDA is expanding the Contract Price Addendum for crop insurance.
Lower food-stamp costs spur some farm-bill crowing
Cost savings under the 2014 farm law will be more than twice as large as originally forecast, around $36 billion over 10 years, thanks to markedly lower projected outlays on food stamps and crop insurance, says the House Agriculture Committee.
Cottonseed subsidy request would cost $1 billion
The cotton industry request for USDA to make cottonseed eligible for subsidy as an oilseed raises several policy questions including where to find the $1 billion a year that the program would cost, say four economists. Market prices are so low that payments are certain if Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack approves the request to declare cottonseed an "other oilseed" covered by the subsidies offered to grain and soybean growers.
As crop prices sink, farm subsidies soar
The government faces three high-cost years for farm subsidies, beginning with $5.8 billion for this year, says the Congressional Budget Office, as low commodity prices drive up the cost of programs that stabilize crop revenue. In its latest budget baseline, CBO forecasts crop subsidies will cost a total of $22 billion for fiscal 2016, 2017 and 2018. That's a 9 percent increase from the estimate it made a year ago of $20.1 billion for the period.
India cuts crop insurance premiums to help rural citizens
To offset two straight years of drought in India, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the government will more than double its spending on crop insurance in three years, said Reuters. Two-thirds of the nation's citizens live in rural areas.
Cargill to exit crop-insurance sales
Agribusiness giant Cargill is selling its crop-insurance agency to Silveus Insurance Group, based in Warsaw, Ind. In a joint announcement, the companies said the transaction is expected to become final in mid-January. Terms of the sale were not announced.
Zurich gains 20-percent share of U.S. crop insurance
A Swiss insurance company will pay as much as $1.05 billion to buy the crop insurance business of Wells Fargo, saying the deal will allow it to diversify its portfolio and counterbalance risk from its general insurance business.
Soy growers back cotton as an oilseed
The farm group representing U.S. soybean growers gave its support to making cotton eligible for crop subsidies as an oilseed as well as having its own subsidy program as a textile fiber. Soybeans and cotton are grown throughout the South and Southwest.
USDA weighs whether to give two crop subsidies to cotton
The Agriculture Department is considering whether to let cotton growers claim two crop subsidies at the same time to offset a worldwide collapse in the cotton market, said a spokeswoman.
Lawmakers rescue crop insurance, though critics say cut wouldn’t hurt
Congress has voted to eliminate a $3 billion cut in spending on the federally subsidized crop insurance program, because of dogged opposition from farm groups and insurers. They say a lower rate of return, which is how the cut would have been accomplished, would make crop insurance an unattractive line of business and result in companies abandoning the field.
Congressional leaders find replacement for crop insurance cut
House and Senate leaders added a provision to a compromise transportation bill that would eliminate a $3 billion cut in crop insurance spending, making good on a promise to farm-state lawmakers.
Hands off crop insurance, agribusiness tells senators
Four dozen groups representing banks, farm-equipment makers, insurers and farmers urged senators not to meddle with the 2014 farm law or the federally subsidized crop-insurance program while writing a catch-all government funding bill.
Cotton, “the fabric of our lives,” seeks oilseed subsidy
Congress rewrote the cotton program in the 2014 farm law to resolve a WTO ruling that U.S. subsidies distorted world trade. In doing so, it replaced the longtime subsidy program with revenue insurance and loans, reflecting the industry's wishes.
The ‘usual opponents’ attack crop insurance
An industry group called crop insurance a key part of the financial safety net for farmers, and asked lawmakers to reject a proposal to slash the program by one-fourth.
Reformers eye popular, expensive crop-insurance plan
Farm-policy reformers in Congress want to rein in the costs of the most popular, and most expensive, part of the federally subsidized crop insurance program: revenue policies with the so-called Harvest Price Option (HPO).