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Farmers must make crop insurance decision before Dec. 10

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A challenging harvest has produced unique crop insurance issues for farmers most impacted by early snow and sustained rain, according to Ryan Buck, a crop insurance agent with Lakeshore Agency in Goodhue.

Farmers who are concerned about loss have until Dec. 10 to file their claim. For farmers who still expect to harvest their crop in 2019, Buck recommends they reach out to their insurance agent as soon as possible if harvest activity may extend past the deadline.

For farms with crops that wont be harvested until the snow clears in 2020, an adjuster will need to visit the farm and assign a yield to the crop. Farmers can then update their yield once the crop is harvested in the spring if needed, according to Buck.

Farmers were notified earlier this month that the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is deferring accrual of interest on 2019 crop year insurance premiums to support farmers impacted by the extreme weather. Growers now have until Jan. 31, 2020, to pay their crop insurance premium without accruing interest.

Regardless, Buck said farmers who are concerned about crop insurance coverage should contact their agent as soon as possible for the best path forward.

USDA Risk Management Agency Deputy Director Mark Gutierrez spoke with Linder Farm Network to share what corn farmers need to know about the upcoming deadline. You can listen to that here:

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