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An Educational Course About Pasture, Rangeland, Forage Insurance

Jeffrey E. Tranel

Summary

Agricultural production is a risky business. Yet, farmers and ranchers who use pasture, grazing land, and hayland have few insurance products available to help them manage for losses caused by drought.

In 2007, Pasture, Rangeland, Forage (PRF) Insurance became available to forage and livestock producers in selected counties in certain states. It is now available in an increasing number of states. PRF Insurance is designed to give producers the ability to buy insurance protection for losses of forage produced for grazing or harvested for hay.

There are two separate basic provisions – Rainfall Index and Vegetation Index. The Rainfall Index allows insured producers to possibly obtain indemnities when a final index of rainfall for a specific geographic area, called a grid, falls below average precipitation patterns for the grid. The Vegetation Index allows insured producers to possibly obtain indemnities when the final index of vegetation greenness for a grid falls below the insured’s trigger grid index. Both indexes serve as a proxy for pasture, range, and hay production in a specific grid.

To alleviate some of the guesswork associated with selecting one’s own risk management plan, an interactive e-learning course has been developed to help producers navigate through the program’s complexities. Users can gain a better understanding of the coverage and configurations of each plan, estimated premiums, potential indemnities, and how to use the tools available on the Risk Management Agency website. “Pasture, Rangeland, Forage (PRF) Pilot Insurance Program is a CD and on-line course developed by the RightRisk Education Team.

Details

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