The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) offers various risk management products to farmers through the Federal Crop Insurance Program (FCIP) and for crops in counties where FCIP is not available through the Non-insured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP).
All FCIP insurance products are actuarially sound (total premiums paid are calculated to equal or exceed total claims paid), requiring a substantial amount of data to price.
Only some counties generate sufficient data to create products for specialty crops like fruits, vegetables, tree nuts, horticulture, and nursery crops. This study characterizes recent changes in FCIP and NAP use by specialty crop farmers, compares differences among conventional and organic farms, and investigates the reasons some farmers choose to participate in these programs.
Specialty crop growers increased the value of their crops insured by FCIP products from about $12 billion in 2011 to about $21 billion in 2020 (not adjusted for inflation). In 2017, FCIP or NAP covered a significant portion of acreage for many crops.
Click here to read the full report.
Source: ers.usda.gov