RMA to allow haying, grazing with full prevented plant payments

The Agriculture Department’s Risk Management Agency (RMA) announced today it is making permanent a new provision that allows producers to hay, graze or chop cover crops and still receive a full prevented planting payment.

To accommodate the different farming practices across the country, RMA is also increasing flexibility related to the prevented planting “1 in 4” requirement, as well as aligning crop insurance definitions with USDA’s National Organic Program.

“We are responsive to the needs of producers, and we are updating several key policies to encourage the use of cover crops and other conservation practices,” RMA Administrator Marcia Bunger said. “We want to provide producers tools to help mitigate and adapt to climate change as well as ensure crop insurance works well for a wide variety of producers, including organic producers.”

–The Hagstrom Report