today, november 2017the 34th congress, held in warsaw, poland, was well attended and our polish...

CROP INSURANCE November 2017 | VOL. 50, NO. 4

P U B L I C A T I O N O F N A T I O N A L C R O P I N S U R A N C E S E R V I C E S ®

C r o p I n s u r a n c e K e e p s A m e r i c a G r o w i n g

2017 NCIS Summer Loss Adjuster Schools and Field Days

34th AIAG CongressWarsaw, Poland

New and updated revenue coverage options available Operating under tight margins isn’t easy, but your producers can lock in crop insurance coverage to help protect their operations against revenue loss. RCIS provides revenue products that are easy to understand, and require no extra reporting work.

Talk to an RCIS field representative or visit RCIS.com

We grow stronger every day — together SM

Will your producers’ bushels add up?

Some products not available in all states and counties. This is intended as a general description of certain types of insurance and services available to qualified customers provided solely for informational purposes. Coverage is underwritten in all states by Rural Community Insurance Company, Anoka, MN except in Montana where hail coverage is underwritten by Tri-County Farmers Mutual Insurance Company, Malta, MT. Rural Community Insurance Agency, Inc., D/B/A RCIS. Nothing herein should be construed as a solicitation, offer, advice, recommendation, or any other service with regard to any type of insurance product or services. Your policy is the contract that specifically and fully describes your coverage, terms and conditions. The description of the policy provisions gives a broad overview of coverages and does not revise or amend the policy. Coverage type may vary by state. Coverages and rates are subject to individual insured meeting our underwriting qualifications and product availability in applicable states. Rural Commu-nity Insurance Agency, Inc., is a managing general agency representing two risk-bearing insurance companies. RCIS is an equal opportunity provider. © 2017 Rural Community Insurance Agency, Inc. All rights reserved.

CROPINSURANCE TODAY® 1

Continued on page 24

Tom Zacharias, NCIS President

For the past several years, NCIS has hosted a booth at the National Association of Farm Broad-casting’s (NAFB) annual Trade Talk event. Held every November, Trade Talk is the centerpiece of the NAFB National Convention, connecting the ag industry with farm broadcasters to discuss issues and topics important to their organizations.

During Trade Talk, Laurie and I — and in the past Keith Collins, and more recently Mickey Paggi — conduct a series of radio interviews about the importance of crop insurance to America’s farmers, and any changes or updates that farmers need to be aware of for the upcoming season.

This year, a special guest stopped by to say hello, former Secretary of Agriculture, John Block. Appointed Secretary in 1981 by President Ronald Reagan, Mr. Block served in that role until 1986 and was involved in the development of the 1985 Farm Bill. He also assembled a task force of agricul-tural and educational leaders to work toward the common goal of educating the public about the role of agriculture. The task force recommended the USDA coordinate local and state Agriculture in the Classroom efforts; there are now Agriculture in the Classroom programs in every state.

Mr. Block, in a gentle and statesman-like fashion, spoke of his support for crop insurance when he stopped by our booth. “I have always thought crop insurance was important, so keep up the good work,” he told us.

When a “Hall-of-Famer” such as Secretary Block gave Laurie and me a pat on the back, it brought out my reflective side, especially as we close out 2017. So, here are a few year-end reflections and ob-servations that resulted from a fortuitous encounter with the former Secretary of Agriculture.

Reflections and Observations Across the Pond

A few NCIS staff, including myself and several representatives from our membership, had the op-portunity to participate in the most recent Congress of the International Association of Agricultural Production Insurers, known as AIAG. The 34th Congress, held in Warsaw, Poland, was well attended and our Polish hosts were most gracious and hospitable (included in this issue of Today® is an article dedicated to the Conference).

At the conference, there were presentations on a variety of programs from around the world in-cluding Poland, Russia, China, and France. Rob Johannson, Chief Economist and Chairman of the FCIC Board was also on the program. Additionally, there were discussions on climate change, the role

C r o p I n s u r a n c eVisitWebsite

ag-risk.org

“I have always thought

crop insurance was

important, so keep up

the good work,”

—John Block

New and updated revenue coverage options available Operating under tight margins isn’t easy, but your producers can lock in crop insurance coverage to help protect their operations against revenue loss. RCIS provides revenue products that are easy to understand, and require no extra reporting work.

Talk to an RCIS field representative or visit RCIS.com

We grow stronger every day — together SM

Will your producers’ bushels add up?

Some products not available in all states and counties. This is intended as a general description of certain types of insurance and services available to qualified customers provided solely for informational purposes. Coverage is underwritten in all states by Rural Community Insurance Company, Anoka, MN except in Montana where hail coverage is underwritten by Tri-County Farmers Mutual Insurance Company, Malta, MT. Rural Community Insurance Agency, Inc., D/B/A RCIS. Nothing herein should be construed as a solicitation, offer, advice, recommendation, or any other service with regard to any type of insurance product or services. Your policy is the contract that specifically and fully describes your coverage, terms and conditions. The description of the policy provisions gives a broad overview of coverages and does not revise or amend the policy. Coverage type may vary by state. Coverages and rates are subject to individual insured meeting our underwriting qualifications and product availability in applicable states. Rural Commu-nity Insurance Agency, Inc., is a managing general agency representing two risk-bearing insurance companies. RCIS is an equal opportunity provider. © 2017 Rural Community Insurance Agency, Inc. All rights reserved.

“Keep Up the Good Work!” A few reflections and observations on 2017

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1“Keep Up the Good Work”

52017 NCIS Summer Loss Adjuster Schools and Field Days

Laurie Langstraat, Editor

TODAY® IS PROVIDED AS A SERVICE OF

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NCIS® EXECUTIVE COMMITTEEMike Day, Chairman

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NCIS® MANAGEMENTThomas P. Zacharias, President

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Copyright Notice All material distributed by National Crop Insurance Services is protected by copyright and other laws. All rights reserved. Possession of this material does not confer the right to print, reprint, publish, copy, input, transform, distribute or use same in any manner without the prior written permission of NCIS. Permission is hereby granted to Members in good standing of NCIS whose Membership Class (and service area, if membership is limited by service area) entitles them to receive copies of the enclosed or attached material to reprint, copy or distribute such NCIS copyrighted material in its present form solely for their own business use and solely to employees, adjusters or agents who are under contract with them, and as a condition to receiving such copies, such employees, adjusters and agents agree that they will not reprint, copy or distribute, or permit use of any such NCIS copyrighted material to or by any other person and/or company, or transform into another work such NCIS copyrighted material, without prior written permission of NCIS. © 2017 National Crop Insurance Services, Inc.

w w w . c r o p i n s u r a n c e i n a m e r i c a . o r g

November 2017 | VOL. 50, NO. 4

Table of Contents

15Farmers, Advocates Use 2017 to Rally for Crop Insurance in Farm Bill

1834th AIAG Congress, Warsaw, Poland

1830Abbott Understands Firsthand the Need for Crop Insurance

32Career Success Discussed at RMA Hispanic Heritage Month Observance

341890 Scholarship Recipients

C r o p I n s u r a n c e

THE PEOPLE OF PROAG...That’s what makes us different. The Regional Vice Presidents and Business Development Managers are a crucial link to the successful delivery of the superior ProAg products and services. We are always looking to create lasting partnerships with excellent agents. Come experience the ProAg difference today.

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(800) 366-2767www.ProAg.com/join-us

THE PEOPLE OF PROAG...That’s what makes us different. The Regional Vice Presidents and Business Development Managers are a crucial link to the successful delivery of the superior ProAg products and services. We are always looking to create lasting partnerships with excellent agents. Come experience the ProAg difference today.

YOUR TRUSTEDCROP INSURANCEPARTNER

Contact one of our ProAg representatives to take the next step.ProAg is an equal opportunity provider. ©2017 ProAg A member of the Tokio Marine HCC group of companies.

(800) 366-2767www.ProAg.com/join-us


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By NCIS Staff


ag-risk.org

2017 NCIS Summer Loss Adjuster Schools and Field Days A National Industry Effort

NCIS staff and member companies had a busy loss adjuster training season in 2017. More than 1225 adjusters and supervisors were trained during the 16 NCIS loss adjuster schools and field days held between May and September. A large portion of NCIS efforts are focused on planning, hosting, and reviewing the annual ad-juster schools. The success of these schools is de-pendent on the help of regional/state committee members who ensure that each school is relevant for adjusters. The committees also help find expe-rienced adjusters to effectively instruct attendees about the crop policies and loss adjustment pro-cedures being discussed during the school. The schools wouldn’t work without the help of every individual who either teaches, leads a group in the field, organizes registration, or any other task that needs to be done to make these important training sessions successful.

The schools and field days are a key compo-nent of adjuster training and supplement train-ing done by the individual companies. These sessions ensure that adjusters are prepared and trained on industry approved loss procedures, which provides consistency among all companies and assures farmers that their losses are adjusted accurately and fairly. Between the classroom and hands-on field training, loss adjusters can learn about a wide variety of crops. Adjusters studied 23 different crops and the Whole-Farm Revenue Protection policy at this year’s summer schools. Attendees were also given training on program integrity and the industry professional code of conduct at each school.

MPCI and Crop-Hail Wheat, Crop-Hail Canola School

Designed to teach loss adjustment procedures

A plot leader at the Stillwater, OK, school helps his group properly fill out appraisal worksheets and other loss adjustment documentation.

Adjusters study a canola plant at the Stillwater, OK, school.


6 NOVEMBER2017

Dr. Edwards spoke about wheat lodging and plant growth regulators and some of the pests and diseases facing wheat farmers during the growing season. Loss procedures for canola and wheat were reviewed by Mark Askerooth, Crop Risk Services, Michael Schroeder, Diversified Crop Insurance, and, Roxanne Wegner, Rain and Hail.

The field portion of the school was held at the Cimarron Valley Research Station near Perkins, Oklahoma. Adjusters completed four rotations where they continued learning through hands-on application of Crop-Hail canola and wheat procedures, MPCI small grains procedures and a bin measurement exercise. Additional company staff who helped with field day activities includ-ed: Christopher Deetjen and Patrick Kurtenbach, Diversified Crop Insurance; Derek Kovick and Gary Williams, Rain and Hail; Dennis Mackey, Farmers Mutual Hail; Jason Schotte, Great Amer-ican; and, Charles Willis, RCIS.

MPCI and Crop-Hail Lentil, Safflower, Chickpea, Winter Pea/Pea and Mustard/Canola School

Pam Jackson, Montana Regional/State Crop Insurance Committee Chairman, and NCIS staff liaison Dean Strasser, led the 2017 Crop-Hail and MPCI Lentil, Safflower, Chickpea, Winter Pea/Pea, & Mustard/Canola school and field day held in Moccasin, Montana, June 20-21.

This year’s school was highlighted by the in-troduction of Dr. Pat Carr, Superintendent, Cen-tral Agricultural Research Center (CARC), Mon-tana State University, participating in his first NCIS adjuster school. Dr. Carr provided infor-

to new and experienced loss adjusters, the Crop-Hail and MPCI Wheat and Crop-Hail Canola School was held in Stillwater, Oklahoma, May 23-24. The school, led by Kansas/Oklahoma Com-mittee Chairman, Sean Harvey, Great American, and Oklahoma School Chairman, Randy Feld-

mann, Crop Risk Services, had 85 attendees repre-senting 11 companies and the Risk Management Agency (RMA).

The school began with a classroom presen-tation by Dr. Jeff Edwards, Department of Plant and Soil Sciences, Oklahoma State University.

Hands-on field training is key to adjuster education.

Plot leaders at the school in Moccasin, MT, show adjusters how to fill out loss forms.

Adjusters at the school in Moccasin, MT.A plot of soybeans is used to give adjusters hands-on training at the school in Columbia, MO.


mation on the focus of his research on cropping systems that incorporate rotating cool season crops with warm season crops. Theresa Shrum, Plant Science Specialist, Montana Department of Agriculture Pesticide Compliance and Enforce-ment, presented on pesticide labels that identify re-entry intervals, personal protective equipment for adjusters to wear before entering a field where chemicals are applied, and the four levels of tox-icity of chemicals used in production agriculture. Grant Zerbe, an eastern Montana pulse farmer, provided his top ten must dos to successfully produce chickpeas in eastern Montana. And, Dr. Mary Burrows, Montana State University, spoke on pest and disease pressures and how preven-tion of disease ties in with the current and 2018 proposed rotation requirement statements in the special provisions of insurance.

Other presenters included: Jed Eberly, CARC; Shelly Mills, Valley County (Montana) extension agent; and, representatives from the Billings Risk Management Agency Regional Office.

Field work at the research center focused on providing hands-on loss adjustment training with various test plots of lentil, safflower, chick-pea, winter pea/pea, and mustard/canola. Fol-lowing the field work, the adjusters were given a tour of the research center trials.

Crop-Hail Wheat, Corn and Soybean School/Field Day

The Bradford Research Center in Columbia, Missouri, was the location for the Crop-Hail Wheat, Corn, and Soybean School held June 21-22. More than 80 new and experienced loss adjusters and supervisors took part in hands-on field and classroom training. Participants learned basic Crop-Hail adjustment procedures, worked through simulated hail losses on test plots of wheat, corn, and soybean, and received an up-date on recent loss adjustment changes.

Guest speaker Jared Roskamp, BASF, spoke about the effects of fungicide application on hail damaged crops, and Jacob Spellman, Rain and Hail, gave a presentation on PRISM. Many thanks to the other speakers including: Jim Bolles, Phyl-lis Mason, and Bill Bergh, Great American; Jim Baldwin, RCIS; Brad Guthrey, Diversified Crop Insurance; and, Chairperson, Jami Wells, ProAg.

Crop-Hail and MPCI Corn and Soybean School

The Nebraska Corn School is one of the lon-gest-running adjuster training sessions in NCIS

history. Held in conjunction with the University of Nebraska, thousands of loss adjusters have at-tended this school in various locations through-out the state for more than 80 years. The 2017 NCIS Crop-Hail and MPCI Corn and Soybean School took place on July 11-12 in Grand Island.

More than 100 adjusters, instructors, and plot leaders were in classroom training the first day of the school. Dave Hall, NCIS, presented a video on the history of NCIS’ agronomic research proj-ects and briefed the group on program integrity and professional conduct. University of Nebras-ka’s Crop Protection & Cropping Systems Spe-cialist, Justin McMechan, provided information on corn and soybean stages to the entire group. The participants then separated into four groups and rotated through classroom instructions on MPCI and Crop-Hail loss adjusting procedures taught by experienced company personnel. At the end of the day, representatives from local Natural Resource Districts made presentations on their functions and activities.

The second day field training took place at the Nebraska Southcentral Research Center near

Clay Center. Loss adjustment procedures for corn and soybeans were taught using hands-on training as the attendees rotated through four different in-field activities.

Crop-Hail Corn, Soybean, Oats and MPCI Forage School

The Crop-Hail Corn, Soybeans, Oats and MPCI Forage School took place at the Southeast

A plot leader explains wheat loss adjustment procedures to attendees at the Columbia, MO, school.

Adjusters spend time in the classroom as part of their training during the NCIS summer schools.

An aerial view of the Crop-Hail and MPCI Corn and Soybean School in Grand Island, NE.

8 NOVEMBER2017

soybeans, and oats and MPCI procedures for forage using hands-on training as the more than 70 attendees rotated through four different in-field sessions.

Crop-Hail New Adjuster School and Crop-Hail Corn, Soybean and Dry Bean School

A school specifically for new loss adjusters was held at the University of Minnesota’s South-west Research and Outreach Center in Lamber-ton on July 19. About 45 adjusters learned about staging and adjusting procedures for wheat, soy-beans, corn, and dry beans with most of their time spent in the field doing hands-on activities.

The new adjuster school was followed by a Crop-Hail corn and soybean school on July 20 with more than 75 adjusters attending, including the adjusters who had completed the new adjust-er training. Field adjusting topics included: vege-tative-stage and reproductive-stage soybeans; dry beans; corn, 10-leaf through 17 leaf and 18-leaf tassel; and, wheat.

Bruce Potter, Integrated Pest Management Specialist at the Center, provided a disease and insect update. A big thank you to Jay Mark, ARMtech, Keith Larson, RCIS, Dick Leibbrand, Rain and Hail, and Chad Groen, Farmers Mutu-al Hail, for their hard work and teaching during both schools.

Crop-Hail and MPCI Corn, Cotton, Grain Sorghum, and Soybean School

This school was unique to other NCIS schools held this summer in that it began with the 85 attendees in field rotations reviewing

South Dakota Experiment Farm in Beresford, South Dakota, on July 13. Representatives from the experiment farm told the group the history of the farm and gave them a guided tour of the projects and trials being done.

Experienced company personnel taught Crop-Hail loss adjustment procedures for corn,

Adjusters rotated through plots of corn and soybeans as part of their training during the school in Grand Island, NE.

Adjusters at the Berseford, SD, school.

Adjusters get a closer look at soybeans at the Lamberton, MN, school.

A special training session for new adjusters was held at the Lamberton, MN, school.

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Crop-Hail loss procedures for corn and soy-beans and MPCI procedures for cotton. Fol-lowing this hands-on review, students went to a classroom to hear presentations from Kansas State University faculty, Drs. Doug Jardine, Kraig Roozeboom, and Brian McCornack. Dr. Jardine spoke about diseases and funguses that can affect corn and soybeans; Dr. Roozeboom presented information about grain sorghum and canola research he is conducting for NCIS; and, Dr. McCornack talked about insect identi-fication and damage.

Day two began again with adjusters in the field rotating through crop plots, learning how to correctly establish stages of crop growth, taking counts to determine the percent of loss for hail damage, working through MPCI ap-praisal methods, and reviewing loss adjustment forms completion.

Kansas/Oklahoma Regional/State Com-mittee Chairman, Christopher Deetjen, and Michael Schroeder, Kansas School Chairman, led the school. Thank you to all who helped at the school including: Jim Baldwin and Craig Polson, RCIS; Jim Daly and Richard Wilkes, AgriLogic; Christopher Deetjen and Michael Schroeder, Diversified Crop Insurance; Travis Moore and Kyle Sisk, QBE/NAU; Jason Schotte and Randy Shadle, Great American; and, Gary Williams, Rain and Hail.

Crop-Hail Corn, Soybean and Wheat School/Field Day

The objective of the Crop-Hail Corn, Soybean, and Wheat School/Field Day was to provide loss adjusters with instruction and field training on several different stages of development in corn, soybeans, and wheat. The school, held in Cham-paign, Illinois, August 2-3, was geared toward adjusters who had little or no adjusting to inter-mediate adjusting experience. The 70 attendees first listened to classroom instruction on corn, soybean, and wheat loss adjustment procedures taught by knowledgeable, experienced adjusters from member companies.

On the second day, adjusters participated in field exercises conducted at the University of Illi-nois’ Crop Science Research and Education Cen-ter in Urbana. This instruction focused on corn and soybean hail damage at three developmental stages encompassing early vegetative through late-reproductive growth and included corn ear damage and green snap. Wheat loss procedures were also conducted in the field.

A plot leader at the school in Manhattan, KS, helps an adjuster determine the stage of growth on a cotton plant.

Adjusters counting soybean plants at the Champaign, IL, school and field day.

Adjusters count soybean plants as part of the appraisal process during the Manhattan, KS, school and field day.

Adjusters move from plot to plot in style at the Champaign, IL, school and field day.


Crop-Hail Potato and Field Corn, MPCI Mint and Apple School

The Northwest Regional/State Crop Insurance Committee held an adjuster school and field ses-sion for apples, corn, mint, and potatoes on Au-gust 3-4 in Richland, Washington. Shane Johnson, Washington Mint Growers Association, provided information about growing mint and an overview of the industry. Classroom presenters were Mike Steenson, Farmers Mutual Hail; Dan Bramwell, Rain and Hail; Tim Satterfield, Hudson Crop In-surance; and, Cheryl Richmond-Witwer, RCIS. Seventy adjusters participated in field exercises for field corn and potatoes on the first day and the second day they traveled to an apple orchard for more hands-on learning.

Crop-Hail New Adjuster and Crop-Hail School

The Crop-Hail New Adjuster and Crop-Hail Corn, Soybeans, Dry Beans, Wheat/Barley, and Field Peas/Lentils schools and field days were held in Fargo, North Dakota, August 7-9 at North Dakota State University (NDSU). The New Adjuster School, geared towards adjusters with three years or less experience, provided in-formation regarding basic Crop-Hail hands-on adjusting procedures in the field for corn, wheat, and soybeans.

The 40 adjusters who attended the New Ad-juster School then joined other experienced ad-justers for the following day-and-a-half where they focused on hands-on adjusting field work for corn, soybeans, dry edible beans, wheat, barley, lentils, and dry field peas. Guest speak-ers provided information on meteorology, cover crops, specialty crops, and current North Dakota hail research. A special thanks to the North Da-kota Regional/State Committee, NDSU and the NDSU Plant Sciences Department (Burton John-son and his staff) for their continued support and help with this school.

MPCI Blueberry and Grape School

The MPCI Blueberry and Grape School was held in Benton Harbor, Michigan, on August 9-10. On the first day, IN/MI/OH Regional/State Committee Chairman, Mason Rue, Rain and Hail, welcomed the 50 loss adjusters, supervisors, and claims managers. David Brunson, Springfield Risk Management Agency Regional Office, gave a

A plot leader at the Richland, WA, school examines a hail-damaged potato plant.

Adjusters at the Crop-Hail Potato and Field Corn and MPCI Mint and Apple School in Richland, WA.

Properly filling out loss forms is extremely important to ensure accuracy in loss adjustment.

Adjusters were given access to an apple orchard in Washington so they could put their new skills to the test.

12 NOVEMBER2017

presentation on blueberry and grape crop provi-sions and special provisions. Chris Meeker, Rain and Hail, provided a presentation on pre-accep-tance inspections, and Mark Longstroth and Brad Baughman, Michigan State University Extension, educated the group on blueberry and grape pro-duction and practices. Don Hutsell, NCIS, gave a presentation on appraisal procedures and forms completion.

Day two was a field day devoted to appraising mature blueberries and grapes and conducting pre-acceptance inspections. The plot leaders in-cluded Jody Daviess, Crop Risk Services; Larry Westerhoven, ARMtech; Don Weckwerth and Pam Larson, RCIS; and, Josh Miller, RCIS.

Whole-Farm Revenue Protection Loss Adjustment Training

NCIS held Whole-Farm Revenue Protection (WFRP) Loss Adjustment Training in Savan-nah, Georgia, September 6-7. Dean Strasser, NCIS, and Lane Webb, Risk Management Agen-cy (RMA), led the discussion on topics that in-cluded insurance terms and definitions related to WFRP and the 2018 WFRP policy. The 115 participants from NCIS members companies and RMA regional and compliance offices worked through loss scenarios and questions that were collected from attendees prior to the training.

Kurt Henke, attorney with Henke-Bufkin, pre-sented “WFRP Challenges—A Legal Perspective.” The information provided was beneficial and in-

Plot leaders teach corn appraisals to a group of adjusters at the Fargo, ND, school.

Attendees at the Fargo, ND, school and field day get hands-on training.

Dry Edible Beans were a focus of training at the Fargo, ND, school.

Adjusters get hands-on training at the Benton Harbor, MI, school.Potato appraisals were a focus of training at the Alamosa, CO, school.


formative for attendees. A special thank you to Lane Webb, Jim Shelton, and Kathy Taylor, RMA, for their involvement in training and preparation.

MPCI and Crop-Hail Potato and Malting Barley School

The objective of the MPCI and Crop-Hail Po-tato and Malting Barley School in Alamosa, Col-orado, in early August was to provide new and experienced adjusters with basic loss adjustment instruction for potatoes and malting barley. The 50 loss adjusters in attendance participated in hands-on field training to work through claims examples and also reviewed how to properly complete loss forms.

MPCI Peanut and Crop-Hail Rice School

Almost 70 adjusters attended the MPCI Peanut and Crop-Hail Rice School on August 8-9 in Stoneville, Mississippi. The first day was spent in classroom instruction at the Delta Research and Education Center. John Morris, Farmers Mutual Hail, instructed the group on the MPCI peanut loss instructions, and Dustin Tubbs, ProAg, Gulf States Regional/State Com-mittee Chairman, and Kyler Harper, Hudson Crop Insurance, provided instruction on the Crop-Hail rice loss instructions. Delta Research and Extension Center’s Stephen Leininger and Dr. Bobby Golden spoke on peanut stand dif-ferences and the effects of production, and rice hail damage in the different stages of growth, respectively.

The second day adjusters were broken into groups and rotated through rice and peanut test plots to determine loss.

In conclusion, NCIS would like to thank the regional/state committees and all who helped plan or participate in the teaching at the schools and field days. Organizing these schools also takes a lot of work by NCIS staff. Providing guid-ance on topics, finding speakers, pulling mate-rials together, securing room blocks and food with hotels, and at many schools, participating in the training presentations, are just a few of their responsibilities. NCIS staff who were in-strumental in the success of the 2017 schools and field days include: Lynnette Dillon, Mol-lie Dvorak, Janet Field-Straley, Mark Flohr, Dave Hall, James Houx, Don Hutsell, Loretta Sobba, Dean Strasser, Anna Walters, and Mark Zarnstorff.

The room was full of adjusters and supervisors at the Whole-Farm Revenue Protection training in Savannah, GA.

It was a great group of adjusters who attended the training at the school in Colorado.

Adjusters work peanut appraisals at the Stoneville, MS, school.

Adjusters came prepared with tall boots to participate in rice appraisals at the Stoneville, MS, school.

14 NOVEMBER2017

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It all started on a February day at Kansas State University.

Sen. Pat Roberts (R-KS), chair of the Senate Committee on Agriculture and a Kansas State alum, kicked off the first field hearing on the new Farm Bill.

“We start the journey to a successful and time-ly 2018 Farm Bill in the Heartland, because that is where it matters most...on our farms, ranches, businesses and city and county halls across the countryside,” he said.

Crop insurance took center stage that day, with Kansas wheat, corn, sorghum, cotton and soybean farmers praising crop insurance for its effectiveness and stressing the importance of keeping the program whole.

Amy France, testifying on behalf of the Kansas Farm Bureau, asked lawmakers to double down on what is working in the current safety net.

“Without question, the most important USDA program is federal crop insurance, and I’m not alone in that belief,” she explained. “Crop insurance offers risk protection to many agricul-tural commodities and when disaster strikes, the indemnity check is in our bank account much sooner than any other USDA program.”

Tom Lahey, vice president of the Kansas Cot-ton Association, also praised crop insurance as way to mitigate agricultural risk.

“Federal crop insurance provides an effective risk management tool to farmers and ranchers of all sizes when they are facing losses beyond their control, reduces taxpayer risk exposure, makes hedging possible to help mitigate market volatility and provides lenders with greater certainty that loans made to producers will be repaid,” he said.

From there, the Committee headed to Mich-igan State University, Ranking Member Debbie Stabenow’s (D-MI) alma mater and where the last Farm Bill was signed into law.

“Agriculture is the riskiest business there is. Nobody else has to depend on the weather re-port for their success, but farmers also have grit and determination and passion for what they

do and for that we all should be very grateful,” said Sen. Stabenow.

“No crop insurance program will make a grower devastated by a natural disaster finan-cially ‘whole’ but it will allow them to survive a devastating loss and continue to support the eco-nomic engine of rural America,” Chris Alpers of Redpath Orchards told the Committee.

Farmers, Advocates Use 2017 to Rally for Crop Insurance in Farm Bill


ag-risk.org

By Laurie Langstraat, NCIS


16 NOVEMBER2017

At that same hearing, Rick Gerstenberger, a local farmer and Chairman of the Board of Michigan Sugar Company, said crop insurance is an essential risk management tool for beet grow-ers as well.

“With a higher investment in growing sug-ar-beets than most other commodities, agricul-tural lenders are evaluating their lending risk and basing their loan approvals on the availability of an adequate safety net, which most crop insur-ance coverage provides,” Gerstenberger testified.

Then, it was the House Agriculture Commit-tee’s turn with a summer-long series of listen-ing sessions spanning the country. Committee Chairman Mike Conaway (R-TX) said one of the common themes during the listening sessions being the importance of crop insurance. “Over and over and over we’ve had that conversation with folks,” he said.

Here is a sampling of what the Chairman heard about farmers’ primary risk management tool.

“Crop insurance is so vital to this state; so vi-tal to every crop in (Texas). Whether it be corn, wheat, or cotton — all of the crops come very much into play when it comes to crop insurance.” – Russell Boening, president, Texas Farm Bureau

“Farmers, ag leaders, equipment dealers – everyone involved in agriculture — agrees that crop insurance should remain a via-ble and affordable tool for managing risk.” – Richard Gaona, president, Rolling Plains Cotton Growers

“How can I and my fellow farmers stay in business? Number 1 (priority) is crop in-surance. …Crop insurance is indispensable.” – Ben Scholz, National Association of Wheat Growers

“With more frequent and intense weath-er patterns, rising interest rates and produc-tion costs and lower commodity prices, our risk has gone up while our balance sheets have gone down. We simply have to have afford-able crop insurance to manage those risks.” – Kyle Peterson, chairman, Southern Minnesota Beet Sugar Cooperative

“When there’s a crop loss, there’s going to be a loss of income on the farm but with a good crop insurance program, and working capital, we may help them farm another year.” – Howard Olsen, AgCountry Farm Credit Services

“I was involved in a hailstorm this year where we lost the corn and the bean crop on one farm. With crop insurance, we’re not going to make any money

at that this year, but I am going to be able to farm again next year because of risk management tools.” – Kevin Paap, president, Minnesota Farm Bureau

“Crop insurance — please protect it. Crop insurance is so vitally important. …It is a key component to obtaining credit.” – Bruce Peterson, Minnesota Corn Growers

“Crop insurance is so important to me. We have three families directly that drive in-come from our farm and if we did not have crop insurance we would not be able to survive.” – Noah Hultgren, Minnesota Corn Growers

As Farm Bill discussions heated up and lis-tening sessions unfolded, so did the misguided attacks on America’s farm policy.

But the ag community made its voice heard beyond testimony, taking to newspaper opinion pages across the country to stress the indispens-able role crop insurance plays in helping Ameri-can farmers provide affordable food for America and the world.

Dorian Culver, a soybean farmer and crop in-surance agent from Harrisonville, Missouri, said that crop insurance is more important than ever in a guest column that appeared in The Columbia Daily Tribune.

He pointed out that in addition to the typical weather rollercoaster, farmers are facing anoth-er year of low prices. Meanwhile, input costs (farm equipment, fertilizer, land rent, etc.) re-main the same.

“It doesn’t take a math whiz to see that the numbers just aren’t adding up for our nation’s farmers,” Culver wrote.

Jimmy Dodson, chairman of the Farm Cred-it Bank of Texas, stressed the importance of crop insurance to both farmers and lenders in a guest editorial appearing in the Corpus Christi Caller-Times.

“When it comes to obtaining credit, the vast majority of crop loans incorporate crop insurance in their operation plans, and coverage is a require-ment for many loans,” Dodson wrote. “Without it, credit would be limited to those with the strongest balance sheets. Given the recent price trends and outlook for commodity prices, there just aren’t many farmers who fall into this category.”

Bill Pearson, a longtime crop insurance agent in Sibley, Iowa, authored a guest column that ap-peared in the Des Moines Register.

Pearson’s article, “Don’t Drain the Crop In-surance Pool,” discussed the unintended conse-quences of proposals to cap insurance discounts or even excluding larger — and less risky — farms altogether.

And an opinion piece by New York crop in-surance agent and farmer Steve Van Voorhis ap-peared in The Buffalo News.

Van Voorhis’ column focused on the role of crop insurance in protecting the state’s agricul-ture economy. He noted that part of the reason so many farmers in his state have confidence in the crop insurance program is because many im-provements have been made in recent years. The last Farm Bill, for example, took steps to make crop insurance more affordable and available to specialty crop growers, organic producers and young farmers.

Van Voorhis had a message for the critics of crop insurance, as well.

“Sometimes folks are quick to criticize crop insurance because they don’t realize that, like ag-riculture, the program touches every state in the nation. It has proven itself to be our most effec-tive risk-management tool,” Van Voorhis wrote. “Let’s allow this program to keep it working, not just for the farmers who put everything on the line year after year, but for the solvency of our state and national agriculture economies as well.”

In short, supporters of agriculture invested time and energy into defending a top Farm bill priority and articulating the reasons crop insur-ance resonates with Americans across the politi-cal spectrum.

What they noted is taxpayers like crop insur-ance because it means risk is shared with farmers and insurance companies. They like it because the American public doesn’t have to shoulder the entire cost when disaster strikes. And, they like the wide variety of crops that are included in the nation’s insurance program.

It’s been almost a year since Sen. Roberts kicked off this great debate over the 2018 Farm Bill back in Kansas.

The real work will start soon as Congress crafts and debates the legislation. And allies of America’s farmers and farm policies will need to remain vigilant throughout the process be-cause critics will continue their relentless attacks against the affordability, availability, and viability of our crop insurance system.

“It doesn’t take a math whiz to

see that the numbers just aren’t

adding up for our nation’s

farmers,” Dorian Culver

18 NOVEMBER2017

The International Association of Agricultur-al Production Insurers (“AIAG”) was founded in 1951 to serve as an educational forum to increase awareness of crop insurance knowledge, prac-tices and experiences from around the world. AIAG holds biennial international congresses, during which current topics of interest related to agricultural insurance are discussed. In 2015, the Congress was held in Kansas City. Then Secre-tary of Agriculture, Tom Vilsack, was the keynote speaker. This was the first time the Congress had

been held in the United States. The 34th Congress was held October 1-4, 2017, in Warsaw, Poland; the first time Poland has acted as Congress host.

The theme of this year’s Congress was “Cli-mate Change, Remote Sensing and Big Data — New Challenges for Agricultural Insurance,” and drew more than 300 participants from 39 coun-tries. Simultaneous translation of the 22 informa-tive presentations was available in six languages: Polish, German, Italian, French, English, and Russian. The Polish hosts arranged a group din-

ner at the Kubicki Arcades, followed by a tour of the Royal Castle on the final evening to close out the Congress.

Arnaud de Beaucaron, AIAG President, opened the Congress by welcoming participants and thanking Poland’s Agriculture Ministry, Chamber of Commerce, and crop insurer host sponsors. AIAG’s Board of Directors was intro-duced, as was Mr. Karol Bujoczek, Chief Editor of Poland’s leading agricultural magazine Top Agrar, who acted as the Congresses’ moderator.

34th AIAG Congress Warsaw, PolandClimate Change, Remote Sensing and Big Data — New Challenges for Agricultural Insurance

By J. Matthew South, NCIS


ag-risk.org

The city of Warsaw, Poland


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20 NOVEMBER2017

Representing the United States were Mr. Rob-ert Johansson, Chief Economist of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), who presented “Agricultural Development – Global and in the U.S.,” and Tom Zacharias, President of NCIS and Vice President of AIAG, who dis-cussed, “Outlook on Crop and Revenue Insur-ance in the U.S.”

The remaining presentations fell into three broad categories: the impact of climate change on crop insurance and livestock disease; the use of big data and the internet of things (IoT) in crop insurance; and, overviews of crop insur-ance in Poland, China, France, Russia, and South America.

Overview of Crop Insurance in Poland

Several presentations combined to provide an in-depth understanding of the Polish agriculture sector: key production and ownership statistics, how the insurance system functions, and what farmers expect from agricultural insurance as well as barriers to market development.

Polish Agriculture — Key Notes of Development

Professor Sebastian Stepien noted that Pol-ish farms are small compared to those in other countries, employ a much larger share of the workforce, and have much lower productivity at roughly 30 percent of farms in the European Union. Of the 1.4 million farms in Poland, more than one million are 10 hectares (approximately 25 acres) or less, while only one percent of farms have an area of 50 hectares or more. These larger units represent 30 percent of the total farmland

in Poland, versus 80 to 90 percent in Western Eu-rope. While there has been a slow trend towards larger, more efficient farms, the EU’s Common Agricultural Policy, a form of direct payments to farmers which represents 50 percent of farm income, has prolonged continued fragmentation of the sector by propping up small, less efficient operations. While agricultural employment re-mains relatively large, farming is the primary source of income for only 25 percent of farmers. Agriculture contributes 2.6 percent of Poland’s GDP while employing 12 percent of the work-force, both down considerably from the end of Socialist era in 1990. Poland is a net exporter of food products, with a positive trade balance in 2016 of 7.1 billion Euros.

Polish Subsidized System of Agricultural Insurance

Krzysztof Lyskawa, PhD, related that Polish farmers developed a negative attitude towards the country’s system of compulsory crop insur-ance under communism, seeing it as just another tax to be avoided rather than a risk management tool. Although drastic changes have been made to the Polish crop insurance system to comply with EU regulations, farmers’ poor perception of crop insurance persists. Education and subsi-dized crop insurance are viewed as the solution, with subsidy levels now at 65 percent of premi-um for the following perils: winterkill, spring frost, hail, drought, flood, hurricane, torrential rain, lightning, avalanche, and landslide. Due to poor farmer participation, the government now requires farmers to insure at least 50 percent of their acreage against at least one of the follow-ing risks: hail, spring frost, winterkill, drought,

or flood. Drought coverage is triggered by the Climatic Water Balance falling below a specified level for each crop/soil type combination, but is viewed as too expensive by farmers. Cereals, rapeseed, and maize are the primary crops in-sured, with hail, winterkill, and spring frost the most frequently insured perils. Losses for winter-kill and spring frost vary widely from year to year, and can greatly exceed losses due to hail. The in-troduction of Western European high-yield crop varieties, which are not well adapted to Poland’s climate, has contributed to increased claims.

Agricultural Insurance System — Farmer’s Expectations and Barriers of Development

The Polish farmers’ perspective was provided by Wiktor Szmulewicz, President of the National Council of Agricultural Chambers. Farmers are more concerned about variation in revenue at the whole farm level due to natural disasters rather than price declines. A significant concern is that, although droughts are becoming more preva-lent, little insurance coverage is available as in-surers are concerned about accumulation of risk. Farmers are selective in which crops to insure, with more than 80 percent market penetration for rapeseed and hops and 49 percent for tobac-co, but much lower levels for other crops where rates are high or risks are perceived to be low. To encourage participation, the government has in-creased the amount of funds available to provide premium subsidies, but frequent changes to the program, limitations on payments, and inconsis-tencies in loss adjustment procedures have been issues. Finally, it was noted that larger operations see a greater need for crop insurance with nearly 50 percent purchasing coverage. However, aware-ness is low for most farmers with only 17 percent of the smallest farms covered.

Impact of Climate Change on Crop Insurance

Among the issues discussed during the Con-gress were the implications of climate change for crop insurance and livestock disease, the effect of El Niño / La Niña on agricultural risks, and win-terkill modeling using weather data.

Livestock DiseaseNadav Galon, former Chief Veterinary Of-

ficer of Israel, described the impact of climate change and geopolitics on livestock disease and insurance. The existence of modern, intensive

A panel of distinguished guests at the 34th AIAG Congress.


animal husbandry alongside extensive, tradi-tional pastoral methods can and has combined to facilitate the rapid spread of transboundary livestock diseases such as Foot and Mouth Dis-ease, rabies, Blue Tongue Virus, Lumpy Skin Disease, Bovine Ephemeral Fever, and Avian Influenza over wide areas and within modern farms. In addition, breeding programs may transport diseased individuals around the globe while they are asymptomatic. Technology has been deployed to monitor each animal within high intensity farms to rapidly detect changes in animal heat production, activity levels and rumination, all early warning signs of disease. Programs to vaccinate traditional herds are in place; however, active combat zones and international politics can pose serious chal-lenges. Once a disease outbreak has occurred, contingency plans for control are employed, including: Total Stamping Out, Partial Stamp-ing Out, and Minimal Stamping Out combined with Vaccination.

Climate Change: Implications for Crop Insurance

Dr. Eberhard Faust, Head of Research: Cli-mate Risks and Natural Hazards, Munich Re, detailed the implications of climate change on the length of the growing season as well as the effect on risks such as late frost, hail, heavy pre-cipitation and flooding, heat, drought, pests, and disease. Extreme weather events and dam-aging late frost were projected to become more frequent and the negative effects of climate change are likely to be compounded by pests and disease which thrive in warmer tempera-tures. With increased warmth, for example,

fruit trees will bloom earlier in the season, in-creasing the risk of severe losses resulting from freeze. While the expected number of freeze events in a year is expected to decline as the weather continues to warm, the earlier start to the growing season may more than offset this effect. Hail incidence is predicted to gradually decrease over time in the eastern portion of the United States, while it increases in the Great Plains region. Heavy precipitation and flooding is expected to increase throughout the world, with the magnitude of the increase depending on location. The overall conclusion was that yields are likely to be negatively impacted by up to -14 percent per decade, accompanied by increased yield variability. Under these condi-tions, risk transfer will become more important and public-sector co-financing of (peak) risk more necessary.

Impact of El Nino / La Nina on Agricultural Risks

After describing the El Nino Southern Os-cillation (“ENSO”) and noting that it has been exacerbated by climate change, Mario Tiscareño, PhD of Protección Agropecuaria Compañía de Seguros Mexico, noted that these phenomena provide only a partial explanation of dry and wet year and warm-wet winters for specific geograph-ic regions. The intensity of an ENSO event is not a good predictor of its effect on crop production, with the impact depending on location, timing, and severity of the event. The ENSO Index is uti-lized primarily as an early warning system of pos-sible drought, wet, hot, or cool conditions soon so as to prevent agricultural disasters and loss of human life.

Use of Big Data and the Internet of Things

The use of satellite imagery and drones to as-sist in loss assessment, as well as the placement of “Internet of Things” (IoT) monitoring systems di-rectly in fields were discussed, and laptop based, GPS-enabled, integrated policy information/claims adjustment systems were demonstrated.

How BIG is Data in Agriculture Really? — The Trend Sensors, Sensor Carriers and Data in Agriculture and their Relevance for Agricultural Insurance

Gottfried Pessl, Pessl Instruments, Austria, presented an overview of his company’s offerings of remote sensing solutions for agriculture in the areas of optimal planting time, fertilizer ap-plication, irrigation, pesticide application, frost mitigation, harvest timing, and storage moni-toring. Pessl Instruments offerings include use of satellite imaging, local ground weather mon-itoring stations, and weather forecasting within a three-kilometer radius, remote field monitoring of both crops and insects, as well as soil moni-toring whose data is used for moisture modeling and irrigation management.

iBISS — An Integrated Inventory, Information and Claim System

Dr. Arnaud Fietzke of itestra GmbH (Ger-many) and Reinhard Kern of Österreichische Hagelversicherung (Austria) presented itestra’s integrated policy and claim management software iBISS (“integrierte Bestands-, Informations-, und SchadensSoftware”, i.e. integrated insurance pol-

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icy, information and claim software). The cus-tomer facing web portal, company document management, accounting, customer relationship management, claims reporting and management are all tied together. Adjusters and agents have real-time access to policyholder information, in-cluding latitude/longitude field designators and GPS routing on their wireless enabled laptops / tablets. iBISS is deployed in six countries using six languages and is capable of handling transac-tions in four different currencies.

Digital Based Loss AdjustmentThomas Gehrke of Vereinigte Hagel (Ger-

many) and Hansueli Lusti of Schweitzer Hagel (Switzerland) presented an overview of MODIS (“MObile DIgitale Schadenregulierung”), a Tab-let PC based App developed to convert the entire loss adjustment process to digital format to in-crease efficiency and decrease the time it takes to adjust claims. The software has both online and offline modes and can direct the flight path of drones using GPS to evaluate crop damage with-in fields; multispectral photos are then automat-ically uploaded. Documents and forms can be signed electronically and all data synchronized with the home office. Loss adjustment manuals are available electronically.

Back office personnel use a second soft-ware package with built-in mapping capabili-ties named QlickView to manage, evaluate, and settle reported claims. PDF documents are au-tomatically generated for communication with insureds, thereby reducing printing and postage costs, which offset the annual cost of the tablet PCs. Data entry by both claims adjusters and back office was reduced by 90 percent.

Overview of Crop Insurance in Selected Countries and Other Topics

The final day of the Congress included coun-try-specific presentations covering aspects of agricultural production and crop insurance in Russia, China, France, and South America, with an emphasis on index insurance.

Agricultural Insurance in ChinaMike Xin of JLT Re (Hong Kong) provided a

brief overview and outlook for agricultural insur-ance in China. The central government supports four distinct pilot programs for crops, livestock, forest, and aquaculture. Premium volume grew to $6.1 billion (U.S.) in 2016 as compared to $0.7

billion in 2007, with more than 30 companies now participating in the program. A number of companies have introduced weather index prod-ucts based on rainfall, temperature, and wind speed, while one company has developed its own Revenue Insurance product for rice and wheat in two districts near Shanghai. The primary difficul-ties with selling insurance in China include the small size of many farms, adverse selection by farmers insuring only the most vulnerable fields, the absence of a futures market to support reve-nue insurance, and the lack of technical know-how to develop aquaculture insurance products.

Crop Insurance in RussiaMr. Korney Bizhdof, President of the National

Association of Agriculture Insurers (Russia) re-viewed the history of the agricultural insurance system in Russia as the country moved away from a mandatory insurance scheme under the USSR to a government-subsidized scheme in re-cent years. The program is still in its early phases and market penetration is still low, with 6.9 per-cent of crop production and 6.3 percent of live-stock production insured in 2016.

WinterkillIn addition to discussions of crop insurance

issues in selected countries, a discussion on the use of weather data to support product design and portfolio management for winterkill in-surance was presented by Dr. Hanna Płotka of SCOR P&C (Switzerland). Winterkill, a major peril in northern Europe, is caused when a plant is damaged through exposure to low tempera-tures in the winter, particularly when there is little or no snow to protect the plant. The extent of damage depends on temperature, snow cover, the tolerance of the plant to winter conditions, and whether the plant is sufficiently hardened at the time cold temperatures occur. Dr. Płotka discussed a variety of mechanisms that can result in winterkill and characterized each in terms of the snow depth threshold, minimum and max-imum temperatures, and number of days with these conditions within a predetermined event window. The objective of the exercise was to link meteorological data with historical loss events to improve insurers’ understanding of the risk.

Other topicsOther interesting topics included a discussion

of the worrisome spread of livestock diseases such as African Swine Fever and Foot and Mouth Disease across Europe and, in the case of Avian

Influenza, on a worldwide basis, along with their economic importance and strategies for disease control among livestock and management of wild animal populations. The Congress finished with a summary of the loss adjustment seminars conducted in 2016 and 2017 on carrots and to-matoes. The next seminar, scheduled for 2018 in Israel, will focus on hail damage to apples and/or pears.

SummaryThe Congress covered a wide range of top-

ics and discussed a variety of approaches for addressing the problems of insuring agricultur-al production. The program highlighted how agricultural insurance has grown to become an established product throughout the world that provides valuable protection to farmers for many of the most important risks affecting agricultural production in their countries. We can expect that future Congresses will highlight the continuing successes of agricultural insurers in providing new approaches for protecting farmers against the risks they face, in developing new technology to monitor crop conditions, and in providing in-formation to farmers to manage their risks, even as those risks vary over time from the effects of climate change and the spread of animal diseases.

The 35th Congress will be held in France in 2019. We hope that you will be able to participate in this wonderful educational event.

Inside Poland’s Royal Castle

24 NOVEMBER2017

Continued from page 1

and use of index plans, and managing livestock disease. All of this to say that, internationally, there is a keen interest in managing agricultur-al risk through some form of insurance. To me, and maybe this was my “listening ear bias,” the key ingredients appear to be: 1) some form of public/private partnership; 2) cost sharing by farmers; 3) risk bearing by the private and pub-lic sectors; and lastly, 4) the essential role of the loss adjustment process.

Ingredients 1-3 are the core of our crop insur-ance system here in the United States. In the U.S. we do have a successful public private partner-ship. It stands as a model of what can be accom-plished when both the private and public-sector work together to provide an infrastructure that manages approximately $130 billion annually in agricultural liability, if one includes both feder-ally and state regulated lines of crop insurance. “Keep up the good work.”

My takeaway on the role of loss adjustment was two-fold: 1) the need for a professionally trained loss adjustment force; and, 2) the need for an adequately sized loss adjustment force to man-age large-scale claims events when they occur. Here again, we are extremely fortunate in the U.S. to have the capability to train adjusters, as well as the capacity to handle large-scale claims events such as the 2012 drought in the Cornbelt or the multiple loss events as was the case this year with hurricanes in Texas and Florida, drought condi-tions in parts of the Dakotas, prairie fires in the Southern Plains of Kansas and Oklahoma, and the California fires in Napa.

There are a couple of aspects regarding the loss adjustment process that probably go un-noticed in the daily scheme of things. One, the loss adjustment process in U.S. crop insurance is based on sound agronomic research. Each year NCIS supports approximately 15-20 agronom-ic research projects with leading agricultural universities in the U.S., as well as Canada. The results from these projects are then integrated into the loss adjustment procedures used in the field. This is done primarily for the state-regulat-ed Crop-Hail line of business. Where applicable, the results of NCIS agronomic research projects are integrated into loss procedures for Federal-ly-regulated crop insurance (MPCI). For more than 90 years, this industry-supported research has provided the science behind the industry loss adjustment procedures. This ensures company adjusters have the knowledge they need to de-

termine accurate losses, giving farmers peace of mind knowing that their loss has been adjusted accurately and fairly. “Keep up the good work.”

Another aspect of crop loss adjustment that probably goes unnoticed outside of the industry is the importance of industry adjuster training facilitated through NCIS. Industry loss adjust-ment schools and field days ensure that adjusters are prepared and trained on industry approved loss procedures, which provides consistency among all companies. There is an article in this issue highlighting the 2017 summer schools and field days. More than 1200 adjusters were trained during 16 schools that covered 23 different crops and Whole-Farm Revenue Protection. Another way that NCIS ensures adjusters are adequately trained is through the “Crop Adjuster Proficien-cy Program” (CAPP®). CAPP® ensures that all Federal crop adjusters have demonstrated an ap-proved level of proficiency and reinforces efforts to improve program integrity, enhance the image of crop insurance, and protect consumers by hav-ing qualified adjusters. A main goal in the devel-opment of CAPP® was to achieve uniformity in licensing of crop adjusters across state lines and reduce reciprocity issues between states. “Keep up the good work.”

Some Reflections and Observations on the July GAO Report

The Government Accountability Office’s (GAO) July report entitled “Crop Insurance: Opportunities Exist to Improve Program Deliv-ery and Reduce Costs” no doubt, deserves a few comments before closing out 2017. The report recommended that revenue returns of the Ap-proved Insurance Providers (AIPs) be dramati-cally slashed via changes to the existing Standard Reinsurance Agreement (SRA). The GAO in its report views AIP revenues stemming from the

A main goal in the

development of CAPP®

was to achieve uniformity

in licensing of crop

adjusters across state

lines and reduce reciprocity

issues between states.

“Keep up the good work.”

SRA as a “program cost.”The report has at least two fundamental

shortcomings. First, a heavy reliance upon an outdated 2010 Milliman study used during the 2011 SRA renegotiations, which made the apples to oranges comparison of Return on Equity to Return on Retained Premium. These two metrics are not directly comparable and to compare the two is simply misleading. Moreover, buried mid-way through the report, page 26 to be exact, GAO acknowledges that realized returns have been less than the 2011 SRA targeted return.

A second fundamental flaw is the assumption that the Administrative & Operating (A&O) ex-pense reimbursement is adequate to cover AIP delivery expenses. The Grant Thornton analysis (http://bit.ly/2iDHihW), as well as recent anal-ysis sponsored by the National Corn Growers Association (http://bit.ly/2hRBBQ8), clearly demonstrate the existence of an A&O deficit. The A&O deficit being the difference between A&O payments made to the AIPs to cover their deliv-ery expense and the AIPs actual expenses. This deficit — calculated to be $700 million a year by Grant Thornton — is real and at the same time is totally ignored by crop insurance opponents.

Lastly, and what I feel is the primary concern with the report, is the recommendation to apply increases to the quota share provisions in the SRA to obtain program savings. An increase in the quo-ta share provision is simply bad policy. I believe that such a proposal is ultimately distortionary and has disproportionate effects. That is, it would introduce perverse incentives for AIPs to intensify efforts to compete in areas that are currently less risky at the expense of other regions. In addition, due to the existence of the A&O deficit, increasing the quota share results in a disproportionate loss of net income for the AIPs. Our estimates indicate that raising the quota share provision by a point re-duces the AIP pre-tax net income by 6.4 percent. Policymakers need to understand that ad hoc and arbitrary proposals to generate potential savings can result in disastrous financial outcomes for the private-sector delivery system and the constituents served by our industry. (Our work is never done…)

Reflections and Observations on Opposition to Farm Policy (and crop insurance in particular)

Throughout the past several years, NCIS has conducted a series of focus groups and surveys of


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© 2017 Crop Risk Services

26 NOVEMBER2017

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w w w. t o m s t a n l e y i n s u r a n c e . c o m

registered voters. The results of these efforts in-dicate that voters (who are more than likely also taxpayers) and leaders in Washington D.C. are supportive of an effective national farm policy. Moreover, these same surveyed voters are sup-portive of a national farm safety net. That is, both the public and private-sector share in the risk, farmers have access to individualized risk man-agement tools, and farmers pay a portion of the cost of the safety net.

As to crop insurance, per se, critics of the sys-tem are either unaware or choose to ignore the achievements of the U.S. system. First, crop in-surance in the United States has achieved historic participation levels. Approximately 90 percent of planted acres are protected by some form of crop insurance. Crop insurance operates in an actuarially sound manner, due in part to a high participation level measured by acreage, regional and crop diversity, and adequate coverage levels. Approximately 80 percent of insured acres have at least a 70 percent coverage level.

It is also worth pointing out that Federal crop insurance is being effectively and efficiently ad-ministered and is operating within its financial targets. With respect to effective administration,

the Office of Management and Budget’s Improp-er Payment Rate for crop insurance is one of the lowest across all USDA agencies. At just two per-cent, it is much lower than the government-wide improper payment rate of 4.7 percent. As was mentioned earlier in the context of the recent GAO report, underwriting revenues for the AIPs are currently less than the targets prescribed by the 2011 SRA.

To summarize, let’s be clear, crop insurance is achieving its participation and actuarial tar-gets efficiently and under budget. “Keep up the good work.”

ConclusionFederally regulated crop insurance has come

a long way, and in some sense, has matured very quickly, if one starts the clock with the 1994 Reform Act. This is only a period of 23 years to the present. The industry and the RMA have achieved a great deal and much of the growth can be attributed to a certain amount of good fortune and lots of hard work. Thus, continuing to keep up the good work and serve our clients with the highest levels of professionalism and integrity should be our top priority.

In closing, I would say that the crop insurance industry in the United States and the Partnership currently finds itself well positioned for the fu-ture. Granted, we do have our opponents and our industry will continue to face challenges. How-ever, I am not sure we could have any stronger advocates in the farm groups and commodity or-ganizations, as well as members of the House and Senate Agriculture leadership. Our industry is genuinely appreciative of the support it receives.

In This IssueI mentioned earlier in this message about the

AIAG Congress held in Warsaw, Poland, in early October. In this issue of Today® you will find a great article that highlights the presentations and activities attendees experienced during this won-derful event. We hope you will also enjoy reading about the NCIS summer loss adjuster schools and field days and looking at the “in action” pictures. We could not begin to facilitate these schools without the help of the NCIS regional/state committees. Thank you to everyone who served as an instructor, plot leader or participant. Your dedication and service to the industry is appreciated. We also highlight the most recent NCIS scholarship recipients and invite you to get to know them a little better by reading their bios. We thank the NCIS Board of Directors and the Communications & Outreach Committee for their leadership and direction to allow us to increase the number of recipients this year from two to three. Thank you for helping us invest in the lives of these well-deserving students. And lastly in this issue, we provide a compilation of quotes from farmers and commodity organiza-tion leaders who voiced their support of crop in-surance during the Farm Bill hearings and listen-ing sessions held this year. We are, again, grateful for the support of our Congressional champions and all of those who support this industry.

As we finish out 2017, let me be the first to wish you and yours a Safe and Happy 2017 Holiday Season!

Let’s be clear, crop

insurance is achieving its

participation and actuarial

targets efficiently and

under budget.

“Keep up the good work.”


ATTENTION ALL ADJUSTERS!

• Take a few minutes to log into your CAPP account and make any changes to your phone number, address or email.

• Be proactive and make sure all personal information is up to date at state insurance departments if you have a state adjuster license or multiple state adjuster licenses.

You must be employed by an AIP and current on SRA required training hours.

It’s Time to Renew Your CAPP Card!

P. John Owen, former General Counsel for National Crop Insurance Services (NCIS), passed away on Saturday, November 4, 2017.

During his time at NCIS, John was respon-sible for many legal affairs activities either on behalf of NCIS or the crop insurance industry. John’s extensive background in antitrust counsel-ing was beneficial for NCIS and the industry and he trained NCIS Board of Directors and officers on the topic, as well as regional/state committee chairmen. John helped develop the first antitrust

video that was shown at NCIS regional/state an-nual meetings and other NCIS training events.

“John was an insightful colleague and was an engaging individual both professionally and per-sonally,” said Tom Zacharias, NCIS President. “For those of us who knew him over the years, John was typically a jovial soul, most especially after a day on the links.”

John was also the lead attorney during the 2005 and 2011 Standard Reinsurance Agreement negotiations and provided advice on litigation matters, corporate governance, licensing of in-tellectual property, and various other matters. He retired in March of 2013 after 11 years with NCIS.

Before joining NCIS, John did a substantial amount of work for NCIS and its members at the Morrison & Hecker law firm (now Stinson

Leonard Street). John began private practice with Morrison & Hecker in 1972 where sub-stantially all of his practice was devoted to liti-gation matters, antitrust counseling, and corpo-rate governance issues.

John received his undergraduate and law de-grees, respectively, from Georgetown University in 1969 and Northwestern University in 1972. John was an avid golfer and enjoyed spending time with former colleagues. After his retirement, John joined the Catholic Church and provided pro bono legal services to several charitable orga-nizations. He will be missed by many.

“As distinguished as John was professionally, he was an even better man and friend,” said Chuck Lee, NCIS General Counsel. “His erudition, hu-mor and good heart will be sorely missed.”

Remembering a Friend and Colleague

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In 2016, fa

rmers

inves

ted

more th

an $3.5 billi

on to

purch

ase m

ore th

an

1.2 million cro

p insur

ance

polici

es, pr

otecti

ng ov

er

130 diffe

rent cro

ps.

Crop

insur

ance

polici

es

protec

ted 90 pe

rcent

of pla

nted c

roplan

d in

2016 (290 m

illion a

cres).

Far

mers ha

ve spe

nt more

than $

48 billion out o

f

their own po

ckets

to

purch

ase cr

op in

suran

ce

since

2000.

Fam

ily far

ms make

up

99 perce

nt of A

merica’

s

2.1 milli

on farm

s and

89 perce

nt of a

g prod

uction

.

General Fa

rming E

dition • 2

018

AMERICA

RELIES ON

CROP

INSURANCE

It’s a

Whole

New Ball

game

Crop in

suran

ce lo

ads t

he ba

ses

Tha

nks to

a far

-reach

ing ex

pansi

on in

numbe

rs of

crops

covere

d, an

d in

innova

tive ne

w polici

es, fa

rmers

of ov

er 13

0 crop

s in all

50 state

s now

rely o

n

crop i

nsuran

ce to

manage

their

prod

uction

risks

and e

ven th

eir m

arketi

ng ris

ks.

That e

xpansi

on ha

s bee

n rap

id. Anyo

ne who

se aw

arene

ss of

crop i

nsuran

ce was

shape

d even

just

a few

years

ago w

ill be a

stonis

hed w

hen t

hey s

ee ho

w crop

insura

nce ha

s beco

me vita

l to fa

rmers

in ev

ery co

rner o

f the c

ountr

y.

Swinging

for t

he fe

nces

From al

monds,

apicu

lture,

and a

pples

to waln

uts an

d whe

at,

from ba

rley, b

luebe

rries,

and b

uckwhe

at to

table

grape

s,

tangel

os, an

d tom

atoes,

over

130 crop

s have

been

resear

ched,

pilot te

sted,

and a

pprov

ed fo

r cove

rage u

nder

federa

lly sub

sidize

d crop

insura

nce. E

ver he

ard of

tritica

le?

Well trit

icale,

a cro

ss be

tween w

heat

and r

ye, is

now co

v-

ered i

n the

coun

ties a

nd st

ates w

here

it is m

ost pr

evalen

t.

Then t

here

are th

e new

crop

insur

ance

polici

es tha

t take

complic

ated i

deas

and d

eliver

user-fr

iendly

risk m

anage

ment to

ols.

Whole-

Farm Reve

nue i

nsuran

ce do

es jus

t wha

t its n

ame i

mplies.

It is e

specia

lly

useful

for di

versifi

ed fa

rm op

eratio

ns. It

allows t

he fa

rmer

to ins

ure so

me

perce

ntage

of th

e farm

’s ave

rage a

g reve

nue,

includ

ing re

venue

from an

imals

and e

ven cr

ops t

hat m

ight n

ot be

in th

e more

than

130 insur

able

crops.

Margin

Protect

ion al

lows f

armers

to ta

ke ad

vantag

e of u

pswing

s in th

e price

of the

ir crop

s as w

ell as

protec

ting t

hem ag

ainst

sudde

n drop

s in th

e price

.

This p

olicy in

sures

the m

argin

based

on ex

pecte

d reve

nues

and i

nput

costs.

Imagi

ne th

e qua

lity of

finan

cial p

lannin

g tha

t com

es with

that,

not to

men

tion

peace

of m

ind.

PRF (Pa

sture,

Rangel

and,

and F

orage)

cover

age giv

es live

stock

and d

airy fa

rmers

protec

tion t

hat w

as ne

ver av

ailable

befor

e. PRF is

now av

ailable

in al

l of th

e 48

contigu

ous s

tates.

The up

shot o

f all t

his ex

pansi

on an

d inn

ovatio

n in c

rop in

suran

ce is t

hat e

very

farmer

and r

anche

r in Am

erica c

an ha

ve a p

olicy, a

nd pr

ice, th

at is t

ailored

to his

or he

r ope

ration

alon

e. Nine

ty pe

rcent

of the

plan

ted la

nd in

America

is alre

ady

protec

ted by

crop

insur

ance.

Guide t

o Agric

ultura

l

Risk M

anagem

ent

Connect with

Crop Insu

rance

In 2016, farmers

invested

more than $3.5 billio

n to

purchase m

ore than

1.2 million cro

p insur

ance

policies, p

rotecting o

ver

130 different c

rops.

Crop insuran

ce policie

s

protected

90 percent

of planted cropland in

2016 (290 millio

n acres

).

Far

mers have

spent m

ore

than $48 billion out o

f

their own pocke

ts to

purchase cro

p insurance

since

2000.

Family

farms m

ake up

99 percent o

f America’s

2.1 millio

n farms a

nd

89 perce

nt of ag

produc

tion.

General Farming Editio

n • 2018

AMERICA

RELIES ON

CROP

INSURANCE

It’s a W

hole New Ballgame

Crop insurance lo

ads the bases

Thanks

to a far-r

eaching e

xpansion in numbers

of crops c

overed, an

d in

innova

tive ne

w policie

s, farm

ers of

over 13

0 crops

in all 5

0 states

now rel

y on

crop insuran

ce to manage

their

production ris

ks and ev

en their

marketin

g risks

.

That expansio

n has been

rapid. A

nyone whose

aware

ness of cr

op insurance

was

shaped even just a

few ye

ars ag

o will be a

stonish

ed when they

see how cro

p

insurance

has beco

me vital

to farmers

in every

corner o

f the c

ountry.

Swinging for th

e fences

From alm

onds, ap

iculture,

and appl

es to w

alnuts a

nd wheat

,

from barley, b

lueberries,

and buckw

heat to tab

le grap

es,

tangel

os, and tomato

es, over

130 crops h

ave be

en

resear

ched, p

ilot tes

ted, an

d appr

oved fo

r cover

age un

der

federa

lly subs

idized

crop in

suranc

e. Ever

heard

of triti

cale?

Well trit

icale,

a cross

between

wheat an

d rye, is

now cov-

ered in th

e counties

and sta

tes wher

e it is

most pre

valent.

Then there are

the new

crop in

surance

policie

s that t

ake

complic

ated id

eas an

d deliv

er user

-friendly

risk m

anagement to

ols.

Whole-Fa

rm Revenue in

surance

does ju

st what i

ts nam

e implie

s. It is

espec

ially

useful fo

r diver

sified

farm op

eration

s. It a

llows the farm

er to insure so

me

percentage of th

e farm’s a

verage ag revenue, in

cluding re

venue fr

om animals

and even cro

ps that m

ight n

ot be in th

e more t

han 130 insurable c

rops.

Margin Protec

tion allows fa

rmers to tak

e advan

tage o

f upswings in th

e price

of their

crops a

s well

as protec

ting them

again

st sudden drops in

the p

rice.

This policy

insures th

e marg

in based on ex

pected rev

enues and input co

sts.

Imagine th

e qualit

y of fin

ancial plan

ning that c

omes with th

at, not to

mention

peace o

f mind.

PRF (Past

ure, R

angela

nd, an

d Fora

ge) co

verage

gives

livesto

ck and

dairy

farmers

protection th

at was

never av

ailable b

efore.

PRF is now av

ailable i

n all of th

e 48

contiguous s

tates.

The upshot of al

l this e

xpansion an

d innovation in cro

p insurance

is that e

very

farmer a

nd ran

cher in

America c

an hav

e a po

licy, an

d price

, that i

s tailor

ed to h

is

or her o

peration alo

ne. Ninety

percent of th

e plan

ted lan

d in America is

alread

y

protected

by crop insuran

ce.

Guide to Agricultural

Risk Management

Connect with

Crop Insurance

In 2016, farmers invested

more than $3.5 billion to

purchase more than

1.2 million cro

p insurance

policies, p

rotecting over

130 different crops.

Crop insurance policie

s

protected 90 percent


2016 (290 million acres).

Farmers h

ave spent more

than $48 billion out of

their own pockets to

purchase crop insurance

since 2000.

Family f

arms make up

99 percent of America’s

2.1 million farms and

89 percent of ag p

roduction

.

General Farming Edition • 2018

AMERICA

RELIES ON

CROP

INSURANCE

It’s a Whole New Ballgame

Crop insurance loads the bases

Thanks t

o a far-reaching expansion in numbers of cro

ps covered, and in

innovative new policies, fa

rmers of over 130 cro

ps in all 50 states now rely on

crop insurance to manage their production risk

s and even their marketing risk

s.

That expansion has been rapid. Anyone whose awareness of cro

p insurance was

shaped even just a few years a

go will be astonished when they see how cro

p

insurance has become vital to farmers in

every corner of the country.

Swinging for the fences

From almonds, apiculture, and apples to

walnuts and wheat,

from barley, blueberries, and buckw

heat to table grapes,

tangelos, and tomatoes, o

ver 130 crops have been

researched, pilot tested, and approved for coverage under

federally subsidized cro

p insurance. Ever heard of triticale?

Well tritica

le, a cross b

etween wheat and rye, is

now cov-

ered in the counties and states where it is

most prevalent.

Then there are the new crop insurance policie

s that take

complicated ideas and deliver user-friendly ris

k management tools.

Whole-Farm Revenue insurance does just w

hat its name implies. It

is especially

useful for diversified farm operations. It

allows the farmer to insure some

percentage of the farm’s average ag revenue, including revenue from animals

and even crops th

at might not be in the more than 130 insurable crops.

Margin Protection allows fa

rmers to take advantage of upswings in

the price

of their crops as well as protectin

g them against sudden drops in

the price.

This policy

insures the margin based on expected revenues and input co

sts.

Imagine the quality of fin

ancial planning that comes with that, not to mention

peace of mind.

PRF (Pasture, Rangeland, and Forage) coverage give

s livestock a

nd dairy farmers

protection that was never available before. PRF is n

ow available in all of the 48

contiguous states.

The upshot of all this e

xpansion and innovation in crop insurance is t

hat every

farmer and rancher in America can have a policy,

and price, that is

tailored to his

or her operation alone. Ninety percent of the planted land in America

is already

protected by crop insurance.


Risk Management

Connect with Crop Insurance



purchase more than

1.2 million crop insurance

policies, protecting over


Crop insurance policies




Farmers have spent more




since 2000.

Family fa

rms make up



89 percent of ag production.


AMERICA

RELIES ON

CROP

INSURANCE



Thanks to a far-reaching expansion in numbers of crops covered, and in

innovative new policies, farmers of over 130 crops in all 50 states now rely on

crop insurance to manage their production risks and even their marketing risk

s.

That expansion has been rapid. Anyone whose awareness of crop insurance was

shaped even just a few years ago will be astonished when they see how crop

insurance has become vital to farmers in

every corner of the country.


From almonds, apiculture, and apples to walnuts and wheat,

from barley, blueberries, and buckwheat to table grapes,

tangelos, and tomatoes, over 130 crops have been


federally subsidized crop insurance. Ever heard of triti

cale?

Well triticale, a cross b

etween wheat and rye, is now cov-

ered in the counties and states where it is most prevalent.

Then there are the new crop insurance policies that take

complicated ideas and deliver user-friendly ris

k management tools.

Whole-Farm Revenue insurance does just what its name implies. It

is especially

useful for diversified farm operations. It allows the farmer to insure some


and even crops that might not be in the more than 130 insurable crops.

Margin Protection allows farmers to take advantage of upswings in the price

of their crops as well as protecting them against sudden drops in the price.

This policy insures the margin based on expected revenues and input costs.

Imagine the quality of financial planning that comes with that, not to mention

peace of mind.

PRF (Pasture, Rangeland, and Forage) coverage gives livestock a

nd dairy farmers

protection that was never available before. PRF is now available in all of the 48

contiguous states.

The upshot of all this expansion and innovation in crop insurance is that every

farmer and rancher in America can have a policy, and price, that is t

ailored to his

or her operation alone. Ninety percent of the planted land in America is already



Risk Management




purchase more than












since 2000.

Family farms make up





AMERICA

RELIES ON

CROP

INSURANCE





crop insurance to manage their production risks and even their marketing risks.



insurance has become vital to farmers in every corner of the country.






federally subsidized crop insurance. Ever heard of tritic

ale?

Well triticale, a cross between wheat and rye, is n

ow cov-



complicated ideas and deliver user-friendly risk management tools.

Whole-Farm Revenue insurance does just what its name implies. It i

s especially








peace of mind.

PRF (Pasture, Rangeland, and Forage) coverage gives livestock and dairy farmers


contiguous states.


farmer and rancher in America can have a policy, and price, that is ta

ilored to his




Risk Management




purchase more than












since 2000.

Family farms make up





AMERICA

RELIES ON

CROP

INSURANCE





crop insurance to manage their production risks and even their marketing risks.



insurance has become vital to farmers in every corner of the country.






federally subsidized crop insurance. Ever heard of triticale?

Well triticale, a cross between wheat and rye, is now cov-



complicated ideas and deliver user-friendly risk management tools.

Whole-Farm Revenue insurance does just what its name implies. It is especially








peace of mind.

PRF (Pasture, Rangeland, and Forage) coverage gives livestock and dairy farmers


contiguous states.


farmer and rancher in America can have a policy, and price, that is tailored to his




Risk Management


If you’ve ever traveled in central and eastern Washington in the summer, you couldn’t miss seeing the vast wheat fields that seem to go on for miles and miles. Washington farmers planted just over 2.2 million acres of winter and spring wheat in 2016. And more than 90 percent of that wheat was protected by crop insurance.

Mike Abbott grew up on a family farm just north of Davenport, Washington, and now farms with his brother in the areas of Davenport and Harrington. They grow wheat and barley and un-derstand first hand why buying crop insurance is so important.

“Crop insurance gives us a security blanket in bad years,” Abbott said.

2015 was not a good year for the Abbotts or any farmer in Washington. An unusual drought affected the state and farms lost more than $335 million in agricultural outputs. The brothers re-lied on crop insurance for their loss.

“I’d rather not collect crop insurance to be honest with you,” Abbott said. “It’s nice to have, but if there are any critics out there, I’d say take one year in my shoes—on a bad year—and we

Farmers like Mike and his

brother all across the state

help support the rural

areas where they live.

Abbott Understands Firsthand the Need for Crop Insurance


ag-risk.org



will see if you like crop insurance, because it has saved most of the farmers out here the past two years.”

Abbott understands and appreciates the gov-ernment support for crop insurance, which keeps farmers in business and taxpayers off the hook completely when a natural disaster hits.

“The premium [support] that taxpayers pay is very important. On low years—low [harvest] and low commodity price years—anything helps us.”

Mike feels strongly about the importance of agriculture in the United States and keeping the next generation on the farm.

“I have three kids; my son is a junior at the University of Idaho, taking Ag Business. He wants to come back to the farm someday, as well as my brother’s kids. So, it’s important to keep the family farm in business.”

Farmers like Mike and his brother all across the state help support the rural areas where they live.

“Agriculture is very important to the econo-my around Davenport, Harrington, and all of the small towns,” Abbott said. “It supports the com-munity and without agriculture, the towns would probably [disappear].”

32 NOVEMBER2017

Products underwritten by Farmers Mutual Hail Insurance Company of Iowa and its affiliates, West Des Moines, Iowa. Not all affiliates are mutual companies. Farmers Mutual Hail and its affiliates are equal opportunity providers and prohibit discrimination in all programs and activities. All coverage not available in all states. ©2017 Farmers Mutual Hail Insurance

Company of Iowa. All rights reserved.

For 125 years, FMH adjusters have been known for their knowledge, consistency, and fairness in the field. They strive to do things right with every customer, every time. That’s integrity your customers can count on when

they need it most.

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Integrity

The RMA Office of Civil Rights held an ob-servance to recognize Hispanic Heritage month which takes place September 15 to October 15. This year’s theme is “Shaping the Bright Fu-ture of America”. Attendees were treated to a four-person panel of leaders from various agen-cies throughout USDA presenting on the topic of “Becoming Your Own GPS: Navigating Your Ca-reer to Success!” The panelists shared first-hand accounts of their personal career journeys, with stories about their Hispanic roots, to give attend-ees insight on how to best navigate their own.

RMA Equal Opportunity Specialist Ron Brown spoke about how shaping a brighter fu-ture through career navigation, aligns with the themes of 2017’s Hispanic Heritage month.

“Hopefully the sharing of the panelists’ per-sonal and career stories, helped to show the im-

portance and significance of Hispanic Heritage, culture, and career success, causing others to learn and enhance their own efforts when nav-igating their career paths into the future,” said Brown.

Olga Morales, panel moderator and of Puerto Rican descent, gave a personal account of how she managed her career. She stressed an import-ant key to career navigation; self-assessment. Morales says that self-assessment, preparation, and being able to reroute or redirect one’s career are essential keys to finding your own GPS for career navigation.

“When we are planning our career, we need to think about what our interests are and what are our professional strengths and weaknesses, “said Morales. “As we are moving in our careers, we need to stop and ensure that we have that

career development and that we get the skills and knowledge necessary to make it to that final destination.”

Hispanic Heritage Month Panelist Mar-go Erny, Chief Financial Officer at USDA Risk Management Agency, echoed Morales’ senti-ments when discussing another important key to career navigation; resiliency. She says that people should expect obstacles and left a bit of advice that she has given to members of her own staff about how to recover from potential pitfalls in their careers.

“The most important thing is not that you make a mistake but how you recover from it,” Erny explained. “You are your own best advocate, you are the expert at your job and no one is com-ing to save you. Do the research, do the analysis, do the hard work, and you will be successful.”

Career Success Discussed at RMA Hispanic Heritage Month Observance


ag-risk.org

Hispanic Heritage Month panelist from left to right: Olga Morales, Team Lead Compliance Specialist, Enforcement and Litigation Division, USDA FSIS; Richard Fierroz, Program Specialist, USD-DM; Margo E. Erny, Chief Financial Officer, USDA-RMA, and Manuel Ramirez, Diversity Program Manager, USDA-FNS


Products underwritten by Farmers Mutual Hail Insurance Company of Iowa and its affiliates, West Des Moines, Iowa. Not all affiliates are mutual companies. Farmers Mutual Hail and its affiliates are equal opportunity providers and prohibit discrimination in all programs and activities. All coverage not available in all states. ©2017 Farmers Mutual Hail Insurance

Company of Iowa. All rights reserved.

For 125 years, FMH adjusters have been known for their knowledge, consistency, and fairness in the field. They strive to do things right with every customer, every time. That’s integrity your customers can count on when

they need it most.

Join the company that is known for doing things right.

Join Farmers Mutual Hail.www.fmh.com

Integrity

34 NOVEMBER2017

For the last several years, NCIS has award-ed scholarships to two students majoring in an agricultural discipline and enrolled at an 1890 Land-Grant University. Earlier this year, on the recommendation of the NCIS Communications and Outreach Committee and the approval of the NCIS Board of Directors, the number of scholar-ships awarded have increased to three.

The 1890 Land-Grant institutions are histori-cally black colleges and universities that were es-tablished under the Second Morrill Act of 1890. The purpose of this scholarship program is to enable deserving students to further their educa-tion and to expose them to the business of crop insurance. Once awarded, the scholarships are in effect for four semesters as long as the recipients meet the academic qualification requirements and continue as a full-time undergraduate stu-dent in good standing at the university.

This year’s scholarship recipients are Chanelle Quinn, Lincoln University, Terynn Riles, Univer-sity of Arkansas-Pine Bluff, and Tatayana Kenne-dy, Alabama A&M University.

Chanelle QuinnChanelle Quinn is a sophomore at Lincoln

University in Jefferson City, Missouri, majoring in Animal Science. Growing up, Chanelle was active in 4-H, which helped her explore many ar-eas of agriculture, which she grew to love quickly. She is hoping to work for the United States De-partment of Agriculture upon graduation.

Terynn RilesTerynn Riles is a junior at the University of

Arkansas-Pine Bluff pursuing a degree in Regu-latory Science (Agricultural Regulations) with an Environmental Biology emphasis.

Terynn has had three internships where she worked as a soil conservation intern for the Nat-ural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS), a public service and recreation intern for the Unit-ed States Forest Service, and is currently working as a research assistant for the USDA-Small Farm Program (NRCS) Extension Office.

When she isn’t working or attending classes, Terryn is active in 4-H, the Regulatory Science Club, and is the junior class senator. After receiv-ing her Bachelor’s degree, Terryn plans to obtain a Master’s degree in Agricultural Regulations and her Doctorate in Public Service with the goal of being a state conservationist for NRCS.

Tatayanna KennedyTatayanna Kennedy is studying Environmen-

tal Science with a concentration in Environmen-

1890 Scholarship Recipients

Scholarship Qualifications• Continuing status as a full-time undergraduate student at an 1890 Land- Grant University.• Have completed the sophomore year in college and are considered a junior (four semesters to graduate).• Have a declared major in an agricultural discipline.• Minimum cumulative 3.0 GPA.• U.S. Citizen.


ag-risk.org

By Dr. Laurence M. Crane, NCIS



tal Health Science at Alabama A&M University.“Tatyanna has proved to be a very capable

and motivated student,” wrote Dr. Dawn Lem-ke, Assistant Professor, Department of Biolog-ical and Environmental Sciences, in a letter of recommendation for this scholarship. “She is an excellent student and a good person, with a strong interest in how we can productively in-teract with our environment. She will be a fu-ture leader and scientist.

Tatyanna’s future plans are to work as an envi-ronmental health scientist or environmental en-gineer, after completing advanced degrees at the University. She is involved in the Environmental Science Club where she works one-on-one with

Establishment of the “1890 Land-Grant Institutions”The Land-Grant College Act of 1862, or Morrill Act (named after the sponsor, Vermont Congressman Justin Smith

Morrill), provided grants of land to states to finance the establishment of colleges specializing in “agriculture and the mechanic arts.” However, not everyone could access this new educational system. Under the conditions of legal separation of the races in the South at that time, African Americans were not permitted to attend the original land-grant institutions. Although the Morrill Act of 1862 authorized “separate but equal” facilities, only Mississippi and Kentucky established institutions for African Americans under this law, and only Alcorn State University in Mississippi was designated as a land-grant institution. To rectify this situation congress passed the Second Morrill Act in 1890, which specified that states that maintained separate colleges for different races had to propose a just and equitable division of the funds to be received under the act. Any states that had used their 1862 funds entirely for the education of white students was forced to either open their facilities to black students or to provide separate facilities for them.

Sixteen southern states that did not have an African American land-grant college by 1890, each established one later under the Second Morrill Act. These universities, along with Alcorn State in Mississippi, founded in 1871 (designated as a land-grant institution following the 1862 Act), and Tuskegee University in Alabama, became known as “The 1890 Land-Grant Institutions.” Although Tuskegee University is not a land-grant institution, it traditionally has been associated with the African American land-grant institutions because Tuskegee has espoused the land-grant philosophy throughout its history.

1890 Land Grant InstitutionsAlabama A&M University, Normal, Alabama

Tuskegee University, Tuskegee, Alabama University of Arkansas, Pine Bluff; Arkansas

Delaware State University; Dover, Delaware Florida A&M University; Tallahassee, Florida

Fort Valley State University, Fort Valley, Georgia Kentucky State University; Frankfort, Kentucky

Southern University and A&M College, Baton Rouge, Louisiana University of Maryland - Eastern Shore, Princess Anne, Maryland

Alcorn State University, Lorman, Mississippi Lincoln University, Jefferson City, Missouri

North Carolina A&T State University, Greensboro, North Carolina Langston University, Langston, Oklahoma

South Carolina State University, Orangeburg, South Carolina Tennessee State University, Nashville, Tennessee Prairie View A&M University, Prairie View, Texas

Virginia State University, Petersburg, Virginia West Virginia State College, Institute, West Virginia

Central State University, Wilberforce, OH

students who are undeclared to recruit and men-tor them. She is a peer counselor for the Girl 2

Girl group where she tutors young girls and facil-itates group activities for them.

INDUSTRY AWARDSNCIS VisitWebsite

ag-risk.org

The NCIS industry awards were established in 2001 to honor those in-dividuals who provide exemplary service to the industry as a whole and/or to producers. The award criteria has been changed slightly and a new award category has been added.

Outstanding Service AwardThis award is presented to a crop insurance agent or individual outside

of the industry who provides exceptional service industry-wide and out-standing outreach efforts to all farmers, especially limited-resource and/or socially disadvantaged farmers.

Industry Leadership AwardThis award, targeted primarily to members of the NCIS regional/state

cop insurance and/or NCIS standing committees recognizes individuals who are directly involved in the crop insurance industry and who consis-tently serve the industry by providing outstanding leadership. One award may be given to a member of a regional/state crop insurance committee and/or a member of a standing committee.

Lifetime Achievement AwardThis new category of award will be given to those people who have

served or are currently serving in leadership capacities within the industry who exhibit(ed) outstanding leadership, guidance and knowledge to and of the crop insurance industry.

Criteria for all awards are: 1. Unyielding personal and business ethics. 2. Demonstrated service above and beyond the crop insurance industry. 3. Represents themselves, their company and the crop insurance industry well.

The winners will be presented with their awards at the crop insurance industry annual convention held in February of each year.

All nominations must be submitted in writing to NCIS by October 15, 2018, for awards to be presented at the 2019 Annual Convention. For nomi-nation information and forms to be submitted, please visit the NCIS website at www.ag-risk.org to download. If you have any questions regarding the criteria or whom is eligible for the awards, please contact Laurie Langstraat at NCIS at [email protected] or 913-685-2767.

National Crop Insurance Services is teaming up with SmartBrief, Inc. to bring crop insurers, agents and farmers important news updates.

To make sure you are signed up for the Crop Insurance SmartBrief, please contact Laurie Langstraat at [email protected].

From industry insights to politics, weather and the rural economy, the weekly email newsletter will contain the coverage that is sometimes easy to miss.


There are over 3,000 property and casualty insurance companies in the United States.

Only 50 are included on the Ward’s 50 List for safety, consistency and performance.

Only 5 have been rated “A” or better by A.M. Best for over 100 years.

Only 2 are on both lists.

Great American Insurance Company is 1 of the two.*

Vist us at GreatAmericanCrop.com

Source: Ward Group®, 2017 Ward’s 50 Property and Casualty Companies, and A.M. Best®, rating reaffirmed August 11, 2017. Policies are underwritten by Great American Insurance Company and Great American Alliance Insurance Company, authorized insurers in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Great American Insurance Company is an equal opportunity provider. Great American Insurance Group, 301 E. Fourth Street, Cincinnati, OH 45202 © 2017 Great American Insurance Company. All rights reserved. 5345-CRP (09/17)

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination against its customers, employees, and applicants for employment on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, disability, sex, gender identity, religion, reprisal, and where applicable, political beliefs, marital status, familial or parental status, sexual orientation, or all or part of an individual’s income is derived from any public assistance program, or protected genetic information in employment or in any program or activity conducted or funded by the Department. (Not all prohibited bases will apply to all programs and/or employment activities). If you wish to file a Civil Rights program complaint of discrimination, complete the USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form, found online at http://www.ascr.usda.gov/complaint_filing_cust.html, or at any USDA office, or call (866) 632-9992 to request the form. You may also write a letter containing all of the information requested in the form. Send your completed complaint form or letter by mail to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Director, Office of Adjudication, 1400 Independence Avenue, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20250-9410, by fax (202) 690-7442 or email at HYPERLINK “mailto:[email protected]” [email protected]. Individuals who are deaf, hard of hearing or have speech disabilities and wish to file either an EEO or program complaint please contact USDA through the Federal Relay Service at (800) 877-8339 or (800) 845-6136 (in Spanish). Persons with disabilities, who wish to file a program complaint, please see information above on how to contact the Department by mail directly or by email. If you require alternative means of communication for program information (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) please contact USDA’s TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TDD). For more information, contact the RMA Civil Rights Office at 202-690-3578 (main line). Great American Insurance Company is an equal opportunity provider.

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