One farmer from the drought-stricken Plains says crop insurance should be left alone in the next Farm Bill.
Moreland Farms sits in north-central Oklahoma, which is a family farm that grows corn, wheat, soybeans, and cotton, and they raise black Angus cattle. They say crop insurance is the most important safety net for farmers, and given current world events, there is not a lot of wiggle room when it comes to waiting for reimbursements.
“It’s very concerning to see some of the estimates of maybe some changes of what percentage of support we’re going to get in that crop insurance program. I say time and again, you can mess with whatever portion of the ag bill you want, but leave my crop insurance alone. This is the most important safety net we have. When you compare crop insurance to ARC or PLC crop insurance, we get maybe a month or two after the loss occurs. Those other programs are waiting on that money for a long time. With the increase in interest rates, we’re carrying that loss and those costs a lot longer before we get funding back in on those,” said Matt Moreland.
Moreland says his region is very dry, which is presenting challenges when planting winter wheat and feeding his cattle. He plans to keep a close eye on world events and looks forward to getting more grain out for export.
