an is increasing crop insurance coverage to its second-highest level ever, and adding hemp to its list of insurable crops.

On average, coverage levels are increasing to $183 per acre, up from $162 per acre in 2014. Premiums are going down to an average of $7.06 per acre from $7.47 in 2014. Coverage was even higher - $194 per acre - back in 2013, reflecting higher prices.

As well, the province's crop insurance corporation said it will separate out the premium on unseeded acreage so producers get a clearer idea of what they're paying for.

Announcing the changes, Agriculture Minister Lyle Stewart said he's confident the Saskatchewan Crop Insurance Corp. (SCIC) was charging the right amount for unseeded acreage, but added, "we were unsure we were getting it from the right people." No longer will a producer be able to insure a small amount of their crop while receiving unseeded acreage coverage across all of their land, he said.

So while some producers' premiums will grow, about 80 per cent of producers insuring unseeded acres will see premiums fall, added Stewart, who said the principle behind this is that "the greater the risk, obviously, the greater the premium will be."

"This is about equity and fairness for the program," said the minister, who added coverage will be available at levels of $50, $70, $85 or $100 per acre, depending on individual needs.

Responding to this change, the Agricultural Producers Association of Saskatchewan said it made the crop insurance program more complex. President Norm Hall said APAS instead had been looking for changes that would better address risk associated with excess moisture, and added that existing multi-peril crop insurance "is starting to be eroded."

Stewart said the addition of hemp reflects its growth - from just under 25,000 seeded acres in 2013 to over 40,000 last summer - and noted that other crops' coverage has been successfully launched on even smaller areas. Reviewing the year's operations, Stewart said SCIC insured 27 million of the province's 35 million acres of farmland, a "strong reflection" of the value producers put on the joint federal-provincial crop insurance program.

He said 2013 was "challenging" with many producers facing wet conditions during seeding, then flooding later. In all, SCIC provided coverage of $193 million, including $58 million for quality losses.

The altered coverage for unseeded acreage allows producers to pick the level of coverage that suits them, noting last year's wet weather saw SCIC pay out $78 million in coverage on 1.4 million acres that couldn't be seeded because of excess moisture.

Encouraging producers to sign up for crop insurance, Stewart said the government is "not interested" in ad hoc programs for weather-related disasters for 2015 "or, for that matter, for any other years."

He also reminded livestock producers of the SCIC's participation in the new western livestock price insurance program, noting it attracted coverage for 15 per cent of the 2014 calf crop, with "another good response" expected this year.

Source - http://www.thestarphoenix.com/