NASHVILLE, Tenn. (RFD-TV) — Rainfall patterns across the South have become less predictable. That shift is reshaping how Pasture, Rangeland, and Forage (PRF) insurance performs, according to new research from University of Arkansas economists. PRF remains the most widely used federal crop insurance product by acreage.
While the program itself has not changed, rainfall trends behind the USDA Risk Management Agency (RMA) Rainfall Index have created new gaps between expected and actual risk in many counties. A baseline analysis of 2017–2024 performance shows that most southern grids maintain relatively stable loss ratios below 1.0, but also reveals apparent differences across states when human enrollment choices are removed.
Economists found that even minor adjustments in interval strategy can meaningfully shift outcomes. When intervals were selected using a method that accounts for increasing rainfall inconsistency, mean loss ratios edged higher, but the variation among grids widened significantly.
States such as Arkansas, Mississippi, Alabama, and Georgia showed more areas reaching or exceeding the “1.0” loss ratio benchmark under the strategy, meaning PRF protection becomes more dependable when intervals align with months when rainfall risk is most volatile. Meanwhile, states like Kentucky and Tennessee showed more minor changes, reflecting steadier moisture patterns.
Together, the baseline and adjusted maps demonstrate the importance of selecting intervals thoughtfully rather than repeating past choices out of habit. While every farm’s seasonality differs, producers benefit from studying Rainfall Index values for their grid, noting years with declining trends or higher variability.
Enrollment for the coming year closes December 1, giving producers a limited time to evaluate interval combinations that better reflect today’s rainfall uncertainty and their forage production cycle.
Farm-Level Takeaway: Strategic Pasture, Rangeland and Forage (PRF) interval selection—not just participation—drives protection levels as rainfall patterns become less predictable across the South.
Tony St. James, RFD-TV Markets Specialist
Splenda’s new stevia farm in Florida is the first of its kind in the United States. Thousands of plants produce millions of leaves that are then turned into plant-based stevia sweetener products. But how do they get the sweet stuff out?
October 31, 2023 09:00 AM
·
Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders spoke with RFD-TV’s own Susan Alexander this Monday morning on the Market Day Report to explain Arkansas’s recently passed giving lawmakers greater authority to sanction foreign ag-land ownership within the state.
October 30, 2023 12:51 PM
·
What does Splenda have to do with farming? Sweeteners like monk fruit and stevia are plant-based — so they are just not sugar, but are comprised of those other plants also grown on farms.
October 30, 2023 09:00 AM
·
Where the Food Comes From producer Donna Sanders takes us along on a behind-the-scenes look at filming the show’s newest episode, “Clemson Blue,” where university cheesemakers reveal how they put the “blue” in their award-winning blue cheese.
October 26, 2023 09:00 AM
·
It is in there, the mold — those rich blue veins in creamy blue cheese that make you either love it or loathe it — but how does it get there? This bonus scene from “Clemson Dairy,” Season 4, Episode 4 of
Where the Food Comes From, explains how and why that happens.
October 25, 2023 09:00 AM
·
No, it is not some new college course — Clemson has been making blue cheese since 1941, and the product has developed a worldwide following and won some pretty big awards. With good reason — it is fantastic stuff. It is also fascinating to see how it is made. Check out this sneak peek look at the latest episode of Where the Food Comes From, “Clemson Blue.”
October 24, 2023 11:32 AM
·
