Sept. 30 Marks Insurance Deadline

Sept. 30 is the deadline to apply for or make changes to existing wheat crop coverage. r

Different deadlines for other crops such as rice, cotton and soybeans will fall in the springtime.r

Acceptable records as crop evidence include copies of elevator or warehouse receipts, ledger sheets, load summaries, settlement sheets or Commodity Credit Corp. loan documents.r

A farmer could mistakenly assume that the county average will be used in figuring coverage levels if yield records aren’t provided.r

“A yield much lower than the county average is used if an established farmer presents no records,” Dr. Henry English, director of University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff Small Farm Program, said in a press release.r

New applicants should determine the type of policy and level of protection needed and then check their records to establish proven yields and unit structures. A unit comes from the acreage from which the yield is figured.r

“The yields for all crop insurance is based on a producer’s Actual Production History or a percent of an established county yield or a combination of both,” English said.r

To determine the approved yield, production records are taken from a minimum of four and up to 10 consecutive crop years. r

Producers who have fewer than four years of actual yields will use transition or “T” yields based on the 10-year historical county average.r

New farmers receive 100 percent of the “T” yield.