WAWG
Last month, the Washington Association of Wheat Growers (WAWG) sent a letter to Richard Flournoy, acting administrator of the Risk Management Agency (RMA), providing feedback on two proposed crop insurance regulation changes.
Specifically, WAWG supported a change that would allow winter wheat and spring wheat to be insured as separate enterprise units. Currently, all types of wheat are grouped together.
WAWG also requested that the Federal Crop Insurance Commission reassess determinations related to replant payments. Currently, if a producer loses their fall-planted wheat before the final planting date, they do not receive a replant payment, despite the loss.
“The federal crop insurance program is a vital risk management tool available to farmers, and these modifications provide additional flexibility and options to protect wheat growers and their operations,” the letter states.
The 2021 crop year has underscored the need for a robust crop insurance program. More than 90 percent of all planted wheat acres in Washington state have an average crop insurance coverage level of 81 percent.