Agroinsurance

USA - Producers urged to secure disaster assistance by Oct. 1

The U.S. Department of Agriculture is encouraging producers who have suffered eligible disaster-related losses to act to secure assistance by Sept. 30, 2014, when congressionally mandated payment reductions will take place.Livestock producers who have experienced grazing losses since October 2011 and who may be eligible for benefits but have not yet contacted their Farm Service Agency office should do so as soon as possible.The Budget Control Act passed by Congress in 2011 requires USDA to implement reductions of 7.3 percent to the Livestock Forage Disaster Program (LFP) in the new fiscal year, which begins Oct. 1, 2014. However, producers seeking LFP support who have scheduled appointments with an FSA office before Oct. 1, even if the appointment occurs after Oct. 1, will not see reductions in the amount of disaster relief they receive.Producers who act before Oct. 1, 2014, lock in the current zero percent sequestration rate.As an additional aid, the Farm Service Agency has developed an online registration that enables farmers and ranchers to put their names on an electronic list before the deadline. This is an alternative to visiting or contacting the county office.Producers who already contacted the county office and have an appointment scheduled need do nothing more.“In just four months since disaster assistance enrollments began, we’ve processed 240,000 applications to help farmers and ranchers who suffered losses,” said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack.The Livestock Indemnity Program, Tree Assistance Program and Noninsured Disaster Assistance Program Frost Freeze payments will also be cut by 7.3 percent on Oct. 1, 2014. However, applications for these programs must be fully completed by Sept. 30. FSA offices will prioritize these applications, but as the full application process can take several days or more to complete, producers are encouraged to begin the process as soon as possible.The Livestock Forage Disaster Program compensates eligible livestock producers who suffered grazing losses due to drought or fire between Oct. 1, 2011 and Dec. 31, 2014. Eligible livestock includes alpacas, beef cattle, buffalo, beefalo, dairy cattle, deer, elk, emus, equine, goats, llamas, poultry, reindeer, sheep or swine that have been or would have been grazing the eligible grazing land or pastureland. Producers forced to liquidate their livestock may also be eligible for program benefits.Additionally, the 2014 Farm Bill eliminated the risk management purchase requirement. Livestock producers are no longer required to purchase coverage under the federal crop insurance program or Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program to be eligible for Livestock Forage Disaster Program assistance.Source - http://www.schulenburgsticker.com/

India - Ozone wiped out six million tons of crops in 2005

In one year, India’s ozone pollution damaged millions of tons of the country’s major crops, causing losses of more than a billion dollars and destroying enough food to feed tens of millions of people living below the poverty line, according to a paper recently published in the Geophysical Research Letters.Rising emissions are causing severe ozone pollution in some of India’s most populated regions. Pollution in Delhi, the nation’s capital, has reached levels comparable to Beijing, one of the most polluted cities in the world, according to India’s Air Monitoring Center.The main component of smog, ozone at ground level can cause leaf damage that stifles plant growth, injuring and killing vegetation. Ground-level ozone is formed when nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide and volatile organic compounds react with sunlight after the chemicals’ release from vehicles, industry, or burning of wood or other plant or animal matter.The researchers calculated the amount of total crop damage from ozone pollution by comparing emissions estimates from 2005 with data about how much ozone each of the four crops could withstand. Plants start to exhibit damage when they are exposed to ozone levels that reach 40 parts per billion or above, according to previous research.A computer model used by researchers calculated ozone levels during crop growing seasons that were more than 40 to 50 parts per billion over most of the country. The team ran the model with different emissions estimates to come up with an average amount of each crop that was lost due to ozone pollution. They found that surface ozone pollution damaged six million metric tons (6.7 million U.S. tons) of India’s wheat, rice, soybean and cotton crops in 2005.Wheat—one of the country’s major food sources—saw the largest loss by weight of the four crops studied in the new paper, with ozone pollution damaging 3.5 million metric tons (3.8 million U.S. tons) of the crop in 2005. Another major food source, rice, saw losses of 2.1 million metric tons (2.3 million U.S. tons), according to the new study.India could feed 94 million people with the lost wheat and rice crops, about a third of the country’s poor, according to Dr. Sachin Ghude, an atmospheric scientist at the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM) in Pune, India and lead author of the new study.Dr. Ghude said the new paper, which is the first to quantify how much damage India’s ozone pollution has caused the country’s major crops on a national level, could help policymakers craft new ozone pollution standards.India’s economic loss from ozone’s harm to crops amounted to US$1.29 billion in in 2005, the study found. Declines in rice and wheat crops made up the majority of the loss, accounting for a combined US$1.16 billion in losses.“The (amount of lost wheat and rice) are what surprised me,” said Veerabhadran Ramanathan, a professor of climate and atmospheric sciences at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, at the University of California San Diego and a co-author of the new study.Prof. Ramanathan said that unlike most studies, which look at the effect emissions will have on agriculture decades in the future, the new study examined how ozone emissions are already affecting crops in India. He said the new study could help spur interest in the issue and help policymakers enact new air quality standards or mandate use of new technology to cut emissions.Source - http://www.asianscientist.com/

India - Standing crops, orchards spread over 200,000 acres of land damaged in Punjab

The ongoing floods in various parts of Punjab have so far damaged standing crops and orchards standing over 200,000 acres of land impacting cotton, rice, sugarcane and other commodities, it has been learnt. Sources in the Punjab Agriculture Department (PAD) told that confirmed figures, however, would be made public after all the flood-hit districts constitute committees comprising officials from revenue, agriculture and other departments for surveying the affected villages.'Administration of all the districts hit by floods have been asked to constitute these committees at the earliest for notifying the calamity hit villages and preparing a final report of loss of crops, livestock, houses and lives for submission to the provincial revenue board,' the sources added. They said that keeping in view the damages and finalisation of the reports by survey committee a package for support of the flood-hit areas will be announced by the government. They said survey in Gujranwala district had been started and hopefully would be completed within a week.Agri Forum Pakistan Chairman Dr Muhammad Ibrahim Mughal said that information reached to him through office-bearers of his organisation from different flood-hit areas revealed that sugarcane crop standing over 70,000 acre had been damaged by the present flood. It had also damaged paddy standing over 130,000 acres, cotton over 60,000 acres, vegetables, fodder and fruits also hit over 30,000 acres of land accumulatively. Similarly, he claimed that from 700 to 800 poultry farms and around 7,000 cattle heads had been disappeared from various flood-hit areas. He said the recent flood had caused a loss of Rs 50 to 60 billion to the agricultural sector.Throwing light upon the reason, Mughal said that quantum of water was not that much as compared to the losses caused to the agriculture sector, just because the money allocated for repair and cleanliness of canals and other irrigation infrastructure was misused by the Irrigation Staff. He alleged that Irrigation Staff had allowed the people to carry out farming in the river beds and even people from bureaucracy were using river areas for farming and earning money. He said the loss could have been far less if this water had a smooth running.Agri Forum Pakistan urged the government to carry out accountability of irrigation, flood control and disaster management departments for avoiding such huge loss in future. He said that maintenance and repair of canals should not be carried out by the irrigation department rather this should be given to FWO to ensure proper usage of money. He said the situation had once again highlighted the need of construction of small and large dams in the country.Meanwhile Kisan Board Pakistan (KBP) Chief Sardar Zafar Hussein has accused the rulers of showing an indifferent attitude towards the growers who had suffered losses due to ongoing flood. He said crops of billions of rupees had been destroyed because of flood in Chenab, Jhelum, Ravi and Sutluj rivers. Hundred of human beings and thousands of cattle heads had lost their lives, but no body from the ruling party had given a sympathetic hearing to the plight of growers sitting under open sky after this destruction.KBP also termed the ongoing floods as 'water war' launched by the Indian government through releasing water in the rivers without intimation to Pakistan. He said that the Board and other patriotic elements had time and again drew the attention of Indian water aggression against Pakistan but our rulers had always turned a deaf ear to these calls. He urged the government to take up this issue at international level and also announce a relief package for the growers immediately.Source - http://www.brecorder.com/

India - Bad weather likely to affect cotton output in Kalahandi

Adverse weather condition is likely to hit cotton production in Kalahandi district. Being the major cash crop in the district, continuous spell of bad climatic condition has cast doubts over the crop forecast.Sources said cotton crop has been affected due to dry condition in June and the incessant rain since July till date.As against the target of Agriculture Department to cover 45,850 hectares (ha) in the district, cotton crop has been cultivated in 44,677 ha. Sowing of the seed has been delayed by 20 days. Plants are mostly in staggered condition and the growth is stunted. Moreover, plant density has not been uniform.As per the periodical crop assessment of the Department, of the total 44,677 ha, cotton crop in 14,998 ha has been affected. Upto 25 per cent of crop have been badly affected in 9531 ha, 25 to 50 per cent in 4302 ha and above 50 per cent in 1163 ha.Cotton crop specialist Narayan Upadhyaya said going by the field scenario, there may be 30 to 40 per cent production loss. Fertilizer and crop nutrients have been washed away from the fields due to heavy rain. As against initial expectation of production of more than six lakh quintals of cotton seeds, the production may come down to four to 4.5 lakh quintals, he said.Upadhyaya further said the intercropping pulse crop Arhargrown in lines with cotton has also been affected by bad weather. If there is relief from incessant rain, there may be some improvement in crop yield, he added.Source - http://www.newindianexpress.com/

USA - Growers consider legal action to implement APH change crop

USDA’s decision to delay implementation of a key crop insurance change—included in the 2014 farm bill—could end up in the courts.Oklahoma City trial lawyer Jeff Todd told he is “looking into several different ways to protect the legal rights of producers” who will be adversely impacted by the failure of USDA’s Risk Management Agency to implement the Actual Production History (APH) change as mandated by the 2014 farm bill. No action is expected until after Sept. 30.Todd serves as co-chair of McAfee & Taft’s Agriculture and Equine Industry Group and has successfully litigated several crop insurance cases in the past.Rumors have been flying across drought-ravaged sections of the country that some type of legal action was in the works, including the potential for an injunction that would prohibit USDA from implementing other parts of the farm bill until the APH adjustment is included.Todd said he “doesn’t think a lawsuit is out of the question,” but that he is “weighing the options” and will “ultimately do whatever is best for our producers.”For some producers in the Southwest U.S., crop insurance is really the only thing they get out of the farm bill, Todd explains. “Failure to implement this APH provision impacts producers ability to purchase workable crop insurance, the ability to get operating loans and, potentially, the ability to collect indemnities.”Under the new farm bill, a producer may choose to exclude any year from their APH if his or her yield in that year is less than 50 percent of the 10-year county average. Additionally, the final provision is retroactive, enabling a change not just to future yields, but also to the previous 10 years that can be used to calculate a producers’ APH.David Cleavinger, a Texas Wheat Producers Association (TWPA) board member who farms near Wildorado, Texas, says that without this APH change, his crop insurance coverage will continue to erode after years of devastating drought.“I haven’t harvested an acre of dryland wheat since 2010,” Cleavinger said. “I ran very conservative figures on one dryland wheat section in Deaf Smith County, and by dropping the yields from three qualifying years, I would be able to increase my APH from 23 bushels per acre, to 28.” At $6.50 wheat, the adjustment would correspond to $32.50 per acre of crop insurance coverage that he is not eligible for now but would have been under average growing conditions.During a House Committee on Agriculture hearing on July 10, Chairman Frank Lucas, R-OK, expressed frustration about USDA’s intention to delay implementation until 2015.Rep. Mike Conaway, R-TX, told USDA Under Secretary Michael Scuse he was “deeply troubled” by the failure to make this change in 2014 because it “would provide critical relief for those struggling against severe drought.”“Producers suffering from a drought shouldn’t have to wait until the third year of a five-year farm bill to receive relief, particularly when Congress intended for it to be available immediately,” Conaway noted.Scuse said an APH adjustment included in the farm bill to help farmers affected by drought and other disasters in recent years will be available for crops planted in the fall of 2015, but not for crops harvested before then. Scuse said “it’s no small effort” to adjust the APH, which requires going over 20 years of data “for every single county for every single crop in that county.”While Scuse did not commit to implement the provision earlier than the fall of 2015, he did promise to investigate and provide the committee with details about potential timelines, and even to consider a partial implementation for crops most impacted by drought, according to Conaway.But during an Aug. 6 press conference, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack told reporters that USDA cannot plan to implement the provision sooner because the department has to select some programs to handle first.“It’s the best we could under the circumstances,” he said, because USDA decided to move forward with Commodity Title provisions. “It was a staffing issue. It comes down to that.”While noting the tremendous progress that USDA has made on many other parts of the farm bill, Vilsack said recalculating APH is very “labor and staff intensive” because it requires computations on every commodity and every county.Asked about a partial implementation of the APH provision, Vilsack said this may not be feasible.“If you’re going to single out counties or commodities...how do you draw the line?” he said.Source - http://www.hpj.com/

USA - Invasive insects taking a bite from N.Y. farms, gardens

New invasive pests are arriving at New York gardens and farms more frequently. A recent arrival has put at risk $325 million in fruit, grapes and berries grown in New York and thousands of farm jobs.The West Coast bug — the spotted wing fruit fly (Drosophila suzukii) — began appearing on soft fruit in 2012. While the insect prefers berries, it also damages other kinds of fruit and wine grapes.Last year, it became more prevalent and this year, Morgenthau estimates about 20 percent of the organic farm's raspberry crop was lost."It's extremely difficult to control," Morgenthau said.The speed that new invasive pests arrive in New York has accelerated, and the consequences can be huge for the state's agriculture. In just two growing seasons, the spotted wing fruit fly has put at risk $325 million worth of small fruit, grapes and berries grown in New York and thousands of farm jobs.The new invader infests berries as they grow on the bush. The more common fruit fly attacks overripe or damaged fruits and vegetables of all varieties throughout the summer."(The berries) are still white," said Peter J. Jentsch, a Cornell University entomologist stationed at the Hudson Valley Agricultural Research Laboratory in Highland. "They are weeks from being ripe."Jentsch said the infestation poses no unusual health threat to consumers visiting U-Pick farms or area farmers' markets. But the results of the insect-damaged fruit can be devastating to growers.Statewide, Cornell University estimated the damage to commercial berry growers at $7 million in 2012. The past winter's bitter cold appears to have reduced infestation this season. The fly began chowing down four weeks later than in previous summers, said Juliet Carroll, coordinator of New York's integrated pest management program for fruit.Another impact of the infestation that peaks in late summer is New York growers eliminate late season raspberries and blueberries from their fields. That reduces late berry crops and cuts farm employment, Carroll said.Some strategies — such as fine-textured netting placed over the bushes to keep the flies away —may be too expensive to consider, some growers said.Other tactics, such as spraying with insecticides, approved by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, are being tested and rotated, with but limited success.Cornell is working with growers to set up effective "Trap and Kill" stations, which lure the pests to a trap to destroy the flies there. Monitoring of the insect in the Hudson Valley have found the insect in Albany, Columbia, Ulster, Dutchess, and Orange counties. Infestations are expected to increase in September and put late-season fruit crops at high risk for damage.The most successful safeguards appear to be labor intensive — picking the berries thoroughly and destroying damaged berries by freezing, picking the fruit just as it ripens and refrigerating it immediately.Cornell's field research shows the fly prefers raspberries, with blueberries about half as likely to be infested. Lower on the list are grapes, cherries, peaches and plums, and other thin-skinned fruits.But for growers, the real question is how long they can sustain unchecked havoc caused by the insect."Before the spotted winged (fruit fly), it was pretty feasible to grow a good crop of organic raspberries," Morgenthau said. "And now it's much more difficult."Journal staff writer John Ferro contributed to this report.Threats to gardens, cropsNew York produces about $3 billion of field crops, fruits and vegetables annually. Invasive insects are chewing up some its top agriculture products and backyard garden produce. Here is a look:Khapra beetle: Stored grainsLight brown apple moth: Berries, field crops, fruitsSummer fruit tortrix: Various fruit, ornamental trees, flowering shrubsFalse codling moth: Grapes, stone fruits, various field cropsEuropean grapevine moth: Grapes, berriesBrown marmorated stink bug (shown above): various fruits and vegetables.Winter moth: Tree fruitSource - http://www.poughkeepsiejournal.com/

Canada - Alberta farms devastated by sudden summer snowstorm

Great moisture and heat all summer meant Tony Marshall was supposed to have a great harvest. Instead, the southern Alberta farmer’s fields have been wiped out by a freak summer snowstorm.“We missed the hailstorms that had come through, so yeah, we were looking forward to good things,” he said, while surveying the damage. “It’s flattened, and it’s going to be really tough to swath.”His barley was supposed to become a batch of beer for a Calgary micro-brewery, but the damage means he’ll be feeding it to cattle instead.“As a farmer you don’t really have to go to Vegas to get your risks,” he says. “It hurts, but that’s the nature of farming. Some years are good, others are not so good.”Marshall’s neighbours with even larger operations stand to lose hundreds of thousands of dollars.“Because we have only maybe 15 to 20 per cent of the crop harvested in the province, this is a bigger impact than it would have been a month from now,” explains crop specialist Mark Cutts.However, the losses likely aren’t widespread enough to prompt the price of bread or flour to rise.Source - http://globalnews.ca/

Australia - Fruit growers vote to collect fruit fly management funds

Victorian and NSW fruit growers have voted to create a new Sunraysia Pest Free Area order for collecting funds to manage fruit fly in the region. Of 460 growers eligible to vote in a recent poll, 371 were in favour of creating a new Greater Sunraysia Pest Free Area Industry Development Order.The proposed order would see a committee of industry members created to manage prevention and eradication activities. Growers in the area would pay a charge towards these activities if they have at least 150 citrus fruit-bearing trees, or produce at least 1000kg of stonefruit or table grapes a year.The charge in the first year would be $3 a tonne. Growers would have the opportunity each year to vote on the charge, which can be no greater than $3.50 a tonne. It would be collected at packing sheds for citrus growers and when buying boxes from a box supplier for packing stonefruit and table grapes.Growers could apply for an exemption from paying the charge if they could prove they do not receive any benefit from the services.In November last year, the citrus, stonefruit and table grape industries in Sunraysia petitioned Minister for Agriculture Peter Walsh to create an order under the Agricultural Industry Development Act 1990 to help them collect funds to aid management of the devastating pest, which ruins fruit and impacts on the ability of the region to export its produce domestically and overseas.On July 17, Mr Walsh placed a notice in the Government Gazette advising that a poll would be held on whether to create the order.The Victorian Electoral Commission posted ballot papers to relevant producers on August 6, and the voting period closed on August 29. VEC published the results of the poll in statewide and local newspapers on Monday.Mr Walsh said it was great to see strong recognition of the importance of retaining the pest-free area for domestic and international trade.“The next step is for the Victorian Government to consult with our NSW counterparts, but I expect a speedy resolution and it is possible the new order could be in place as early as October,” he said.Victorian Government funding for the PFA will continue. Sunraysia Citrus Growers chairman Vince De Maria said the order was a positive move towards gaining control over fruit fly.Source - http://www.freshplaza.com/

Losses for agricultural sector in Gaza estimated at 550 million dollars

The preliminary estimates about the total losses for the agricultural sector in Gaza have been estimated at 550 million dollars, of which 350 million correspond to direct losses and $ 200 million to indirect losses.In a joint press conference held at the fishing port of Gaza, with the participation of representatives from the Ministry of Agriculture and members of the agricultural sector, as well as the fishermen's union, it was announced that "the direct damages to the agricultural sub-sectors has been estimated at 200.4 million dollars, affecting more than half of the agricultural area, which is estimated at 140,000 hectares."Dr. Nabil Abu Shamala, director general of policy and planning at the Ministry of Agriculture said that "the damage to and loss of livestock production amounted to 70.8 million; that to soil and water amounts to 68.2 million dollars, and damage to fisheries reaches 10 million dollars; the estimated losses of crops stored amount to 16 million dollars."He also noted that "water wells and water tanks have been affected, as well as the lines for water supply, in addition to the destruction of agricultural land located along the eastern border of the area, where about 34,500 hectares were bombed and destroyed completely."He added that "the value of indirect losses resulting from the loss of opportunities and disruption of the labour force in the agricultural sector if of 200 million dollars, and the most affected provinces are Khan Younis, with 79 million dollars, the province of Gaza, with 60 million dollars, followed by the northern Gaza Strip, with 48.5 million."He pointed out that "one of the most important results of this barbaric war is an acute shortage of locally produced agricultural crops and high prices, which threatens the Gaza Strip's food security, which according to estimates, may already be affecting about half of the area's population."Source - http://www.freshplaza.com/

India - Floods dampen hopes of horticulture farmers

Standing crops in hundreds of acres in Konaseema damaged. A good number of farmers opted for papaya as an inter-crop with coconut by investing about Rs. 50,000 per acre.The hopes of horticulture farmers from this greenish village on the banks of Godavari were dampened by floods. At a time when the crops are about to yield, the sudden rise in the Godavari has played the spoilsport.The farmers, who were in a cheerful mood till three days ago, are calculating their losses by standing in knee-deep water on Wednesday. Even as the flood is receding, the damage has already been done to the standing crops of banana, sweet orange, papaya, betel leaf and vegetables spread in hundreds of acres.A good number of farmers opted for papaya as an inter-crop with coconut by investing about Rs. 50,000 per acre. When the fruit was in ripening stage, entire gardens came under sheets of water. “Now, the yield is hopeless. We can’t count on any yield and the entire investment turned into mere waste,” said Kola Edukondalu, who cultivated papaya in two acres in Ainavilli Lanka. “You know the cost of seed? It is Rs. 7,000 per 100 grams and we bought it from Bangalore,” he says while calculating other investments such as labour, fertilizer and pesticide.Village maroonedThe village is under a sheet of water and boats are being used for transportation. People residing in the low-lying areas are spending their second day in the relief camps.Sweet orange and betel were cultivated in huge extents in the vicinity and the two crops too were at the yielding stage. “It will take another two to three days for the floodwater to recede from the farms and fields. By that time, sweet orange attracts bugs and the betel leaf will be completely damaged,” says Salivahana, a farmer from Ainavilli Lanka.Vegetables sown in hundreds of acres in the abutting Kotipalli Baga village are marooned and the farmers lost all the hopes of minimum returns. “Though coconut growers are the happiest lot as the sand deposits will make the groves more fertile, the horticulture and vegetable farmers are a worried lot. Most of them are tenant farmers and the loss is irrecoverable for them,” M.V. Subba Rao, who owns a coconut grove in the village, said.Source - http://www.thehindu.com/

USA - Sudden death syndrome and white mold observed in Illinois

Signs and symptoms of a few soybean diseases have begun to show up in some areas of the state over the last few weeks, and two of these diseases, sudden death syndrome (SDS) and Sclerotinia stem rot (white mold), are likely to cause economic losses in some growers' fields this year, said a University of Illinois plant pathologist.Carl Bradley explained that symptoms of SDS that currently are being observed include interveinal chlorosis and necrosis of the leaves (veins remain green while the tissues between the veins turn yellow and then brown). "These symptoms look exactly like the foliar symptoms caused by a different disease, brown stem rot. Brown stem rot, however, causes internal browning of the pith in soybean stems while SDS does not affect soybean stems," he said.On SDS-affected plants, the leaves will fall off eventually, while the petioles will remain attached to the stems and branches. In some cases, Bradley said, a bluish-white mass of spores of the SDS fungus (Fusarium virguliforme) may be observed on the roots."Although the foliar symptoms of SDS are now being observed, infection by the SDS fungus occurred during the seedling stage, not long after planting. The symptoms that are now being observed are the effect of toxins that the SDS pathogen produces that are phytotoxic," he said.Cool and wet weather after planting along with recent rainfall received in parts of the state have been favorable for infection and disease development and are the reasons that SDS incidence is high in some areas this year, Bradley explained."The primary method of managing SDS is to choose the most resistant soybean varieties available. Some evidence has shown that high soybean cyst nematode (SCN) egg populations may also increase the likelihood of severe SDS; therefore, managing SCN populations through resistant varieties and crop rotation may also reduce the risk of SDS," he said.White mold has also been observed in fields located in the northern half of Illinois this year. "The appearance of this disease also is weather-related. Areas in the northern half of the state that were cooler and wetter than normal after soybean plants began to flower are the areas that are affected the most severely," Bradley said."Unfortunately, once white mold signs and symptoms are detected in the field, fungicide applications generally will be futile as the damage has already been done," he added.Bradley said that growers with severe levels of white mold may encounter some discounts at the elevator this year for high levels of foreign matter. "Some sclerotia (dark survival structures produced by the white mold fungus -- Sclerotinia sclerotiorum) that are formed on plants may be similar in size to the seed, and will make their way to the hopper and eventually the elevator, where discounts may be received," he explained.Source - http://www.farmersadvance.com/

Canada - Farmers struggle with wet harvest

It rains. Then it pours. Now, will it freeze?With weather watchers raising the possibility of frost this week, Manitoba farmers are struggling to get harvestable crops into the bin — wet or dry — and keeping their fingers crossed later crops such as corn and soybeans will reach maturity in time.Many hay producers in the province are still trying to gather up enough supplies for winter, the president of the Manitoba Forage and Grasslands Association says.“I think we’re looking at pretty tight stocks,” said Jim Lintott. “We came into the summer having had no hay inventory for basically two winters… we finished off the winter and there was just no inventory left. That’s been the struggle for two years in a row.”That means all the feed producers will need this winter will have to come from this summer’s production, he added.In years past, a farmer who was short on hay could turn to a neighbour, but not anymore.“The same is true for your neighbours… everybody is tight to start with, everybody is tight in terms of average, then you have the weather on top of it,” Lintott said.Because of the wet conditions, many forage producers turned to making silage, instead of putting up dry hay.“We still want to make dry hay whenever we can because it’s cheaper to make, particularly with the second cut,” he said. “There’s more cost involved with silage, but then it reduces the risk substantially when you go to a silage program, whether it’s chopped or round bales.”Some forage producers were able to get a second cut off during a stretch of dry weather in early August, but those whose forage wasn’t ready to cut during the brief window lost out, said Lintott.Forage producers are not alone in their water troubles, however.“It’s definitely affecting everybody,” said Bill Ross, general manager of the Manitoba Canola Growers Association. “We’ve had too much rain, and out west they’ve had even more rain than the rest of us.”What is getting harvested isn’t coming in dry, he added.“Producers are still able to get out on the land, and there’s been some canola swathed and I’ve seen some cereals done, but it can’t be coming off dry. I’m positive they’re being dried,” he said. “But if we keep getting more rain, guys are going to have trouble getting on the land at all.”The result is farmers are left trying to balance options, said Pam de Rocquigny, a business development specialist with Manitoba’s Department of Agriculture. Some are opting to harvest crops that are still too wet and dry them once they’re off the field.“Of course there is going to be an extra cost if they are putting it through a dryer,” de Rocquigny said. “But at the same time they’re weighing what the potential losses could be if they have a downgraded quality due to weathering losses or something like that, so you’re weighing if you can leave it out there. Is it getting too mature, am I going to have losses due to shattering or something like that… or can I take it off at a little bit higher moisture content and then do something about it?”But there is one big difference between forage crops and cereal or oilseed crops when it comes to excess moisture.The vast majority of cereal and oilseed producers insure their crops, while uptake on the newly available forage insurance has been minimal, said Lintott.“Crop insurance on grains and oilseeds has about 95, 98 per cent sign-up, everybody buys crop insurance for those annual crops, but it has only been from six to 16 per cent on forages,” he said. “As a rule, we do not think there is enough risk with growing forages to insure them, but if you actually look at the amount of investment… the amount of nutrients you’re removing from your soil that has to somehow be replaced, forages are actually quite expensive and you need to look closely at your risk management needs.”Source - http://www.manitobacooperator.ca/

India - Heavy rains, pest brew trouble for coffee planters

Prolonged dry days, followed by heavy rains and pest attack during a belated monsoon are brewing production crisis for coffee planters in Karnataka, which accounts for 69 percent of the country's bean production."Absence of pre-summer showers, a delayed monsoon remaining vigorous and invasion by the white stem borer pest in the Arabica variety plantations are likely to hit our production target in the crop year (October-September)," Coffee Board chairman Javed Akthar told IANS in an interview here.Though the state-run board has estimated an all-time high production of 344,750 tonnes for 2014-15 as part of its post-blossom forecast, the target is unlikely to be met due to 50 percent damage to plantations in the coffee-growing regions of the state across the rich bio-diverse Western Ghats."About 10 million (100 lakh) Arabica plants have to be removed from 3,200 hectares across coffee regions to check the spread of white stem borer, which flares up due to erratic rainfall and rising temperature in the Deccan Plateau," Akhtar said on the margins of the commodity plantations event.The dreaded pest, which attacks only in India among the world's 10 coffee-producing countries, is a brown coloured beetle that damages coffee plants and causes a yield loss up to 40 percent."The larvae typically enter a plant's stem and burrows up to its roots. Infested plants turn yellow and their leaves wilt. Though old plants get damaged, new plants perish," Akthar pointed out.Of the total output the board has projected a quarter ago, Robusta variety is estimated to be 239,250 tonnes and Arabica 105,500 tonnes for the ensuing crop year.Planters, however, claim that the board's estimates are unrealistic in view of the pest menace and excess rains in the Malnad region of the state that continues this month."The board made a similar estimate of 347,000 tonnes last year (2013-14) only to revise downwards by 10 percent, as the final production slumped to 304,500 tonnes as against 318,200 tonnes in 2012-13," a coffee planter told IANS here.Contrary to the board's projection, the Karnataka Planters' Association (KPA) estimates that the production will be about 300,000 tonnes, as conditions remain same as last year."Heavy rains from July till this week in the coffee belt have also led to cherries falling off the bushes and absence of sunlight for days led to water stagnating in the estates, which may result in black rot disease setting in," KPA president D.G. Jayaram noted.Of the total output (304,500 tonnes) in 2013-14, Karnataka produced 211,100 tonnes of Arabica and Robusta, Kerala 66,675 tonnes and Tamil Nadu 18,775 tonnes.Similarly, of the total 415,341 hectares of land in which the aromatic beans are grown, 347,236 hectares are spread across the three southern states, with Karnataka having 230,333 hectares, followed by Kerala 85,359 hectares and Tamil Nadu 31,544 hectares."We have taken integrated pest management steps (IPM) on mission mode to tackle the menace and limit its fallout in unaffected estates by training and demonstrating to planters and small growers with less than five hectares of holding," Akhtar said.The board has roped in the state-run Indian Council of Agriculture Research (ICAR) for collaborative research on the menace and engaged private labs such as Bio-control Research Lab to identify female pheromones and Kairomons."We have also submitted an action plan to the commerce ministry for on catch, kill, gap filling, community nurseries on mission mode and develop the beans with tolerance to pests and diseases," Akhtar observed.Unlike tea, which is largely consumed across the country, about 70 percent of the Indian coffee is exported the world over, especially to Europe and the US."Though exports declined nine percent to 122,340 tonnes in first five months of this fiscal (2014-15) from 134,361 tonnes in same period of last fiscal (2013-14), value realisation was 4.3 percent up at Rs.2,084 crore from Rs.1,998 crore, as unit price was 15 percent more at Rs.170 per kg than Rs.149 per kg," United Planters’ Association of Southern India (Upasi) commodities head R. Sanjith told IANS.Year-on-year, exports increased 4.4 percent to 312,454 tonnes in fiscal 2013-14 from 299,275 tonnes in fiscal 2012-13 and value realization was also 4.6 percent higher at Rs.4,760 crore as against Rs.4,552 crore though unit value was same - Rs.152 per kg.Source - http://www.daijiworld.com/

USA - Hail Loss Claims Closing Date Approaching

After record hail crop damage and claims last year, the 2014 season has been below average in reported damage so far this year. The last day for producers with state hail insurance to file a hail loss claim is October 1, 2014.“This year has been fairly quiet compared to last year. We’ve had a few events around the state, but to date we are below average. The department wants to remind producers that if they experienced any hail damage and have coverage through the state, they should get their claim in as soon as possible,” said Walt Anseth, Rural Development Section Supervisor with the Montana Department of Agriculture.As of September 1 with the possibility of more hail this season, there have been 321 claims filed with the department, down from 1,046 last year. Average losses for the state hail insurance program the last ten years total 539 claims with a 74% loss ratio, while this year’s loss ratio to date is 45%.“It’s important for producers to remember that it is not the responsibility of your private carrier to inform the department of their hail loss. Hail loss claims need to be filed with the department by October 1, 2014,” said Anseth.Source - http://www.roundupweb.com/

USA - Reducing insurance subsidies for wealthy farmers could save hundreds of millions annually

Reducing Crop Insurance subsidies for America's wealthy farmers could save hundreds of millions annually for taxpayers, according to a new report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO). GAO's report examined the effects of reducing the federal subsidy for crop insurance revenue policies, and found possible savings of nearly $2 billion per year with little effect on farmers' total production cost per acre."This report provides us a blueprint on how to save hundreds of millions of dollars with little impact on our farm industry." Dr. Coburn said. "The Federal Government needs to get out of the business of subsidizing the wealthiest farmers."GAO's report notes that the cost to the federal government of the crop insurance program increased from an average of $3.4 billion per year from 2003 through 2007 to an average of $8.4 billion per year from 2008 through 2012, peaking at $14.1 billion in 2012, a new record. During this time period, the rate of premium subsidies provided by the federal government increased from 37 percent to 63 percent and the amount of acreage covered by the program increased dramatically, all while the farm industry was bringing in record profits.The GAO report also found median farm household income was significantly higher than median income for all U.S. households in 2012. While the median income for all U.S. households was $51,017, households associated with farms specializing in cash grains such as corn or soybeans had a median household income of about $82,300 and farms specializing in a few choice crops (rice, tobacco, cotton, and peanuts) netted a median income of $101,400. Success does not need a government subsidy.Source - http://insurancenewsnet.com/