Reading Time: 3 minutes Two years of rough weather conditions haven’t been enough to drive producers to increase their crop insurance coverage. “I don’t think there’s a huge change in the overall level of insurance participation. The reasons people participate aren’t always dependent on the weather,” said Jesse Cole, research analyst at Agriculture Financial Services Corporation (AFSC). “There could […] Read more
Unseeded acres create ripple effect in the number of insured acres this summer
Insured barley and pea acres are down, but canola, lentil, and hemp acres went up
UNHARVESTED ACRES: Farmers scrambling to avert a second wreck
If your crop is a writeoff you need an insurance assessment — but you need to get out on the land to get a sample first
Reading Time: 3 minutes Time is running out for producers trying to deal with unharvested — and unsalvageable — acres. And the situation could become a train wreck for many of them if the province’s crop insurer can’t speed up its assessments, say farm groups. “Within certain regions, I would say that dire is an apt description because there […] Read more
Crop insurer says it is ‘streamlining’ inspection process
AFSC is also asking producers to gather information to speed up the assessment of unharvested acres
Reading Time: < 1 minute Here’s what AFSC says it has done to “streamline inspection processes in order to expedite assessments”: The number of required field counts has been reduced when appraising wildlife damage and potential production on the unharvested acres, relying on the inspector’s judgment to do more counts when required. Allow visual appraisals on crops where, in the […] Read more
New board put in charge of province’s scandal-plagued crop insurer
Many well-known faces in the ag community are on the new board of the Agricultural Financial Services Corporation
Reading Time: 2 minutes Ten months after dismissing the board of directors of the Agricultural Financial Services Corporation, Agriculture Minister Oneil Carlier has finally named its replacements. And the board’s first action will be to find a new chief executive officer to replace one who was suspended with pay last June after the provincial auditor found a host of […] Read more
Alberta farm groups want provincial action on unharvested crops
A coalition of Alberta farm groups calling itself “Team Alberta” is meeting with the province’s agriculture minister and representatives from the Agriculture Financial Services Corporation (AFSC) on Wednesday seeking immediate action regarding approximately one million unharvested acres still sitting in farmers’ fields. They are recommending that farmers in the hardest hit areas of Alberta be […] Read more
Plant 2017: It’s all about making the best of a bad situation
It was never going to be good, but crop specialists say this seeding season may not be as bad as feared
Reading Time: 3 minutes To say that last year’s harvest season in Alberta was unusual would be putting it mildly. The exceptionally wet fall resulted in 967,569 unharvested acres reported to Agricultural Financial Services Corporation (AFSC) this past winter, representing millions of dollars in seed and inputs that have yet to be recouped. So the big question this spring […] Read more
The Big Wreck: One million unharvested acres
The financial hit will be huge and getting rid of those damaged crops could delay seeding and put this year’s crop at risk
Reading Time: 4 minutes [Updated: March 20, 2017] Ed Tollefson is worried he won’t be able to get 700 acres of snow-buried crop off his field before seeding this year. And the Valleyview-area farmer is not alone. Alberta producers have reported 967,569 unharvested acres to Agricultural Financial Services Corporation (AFSC) — a massive area that would have cost those […] Read more
Help for some producers with unharvested acres
Reading Time: < 1 minute Farm Credit Canada is offering “flexibility to all customers” who have been hit hard by excessive moisture and delayed harvesting. “This year’s wet weather in parts of Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba has certainly been challenging for many farmers whose crops have been affected by excessive moisture,” FCC president and CEO Michael Hoffort said in a […] Read more
Alberta sacks AFSC board over expenses of top brass
Limo rides, Oilers tickets, and taking gifts from vendors among the long list of accusations
Reading Time: 2 minutes The province has dismissed the board of the Agriculture Financial Services Corp. and suspended three senior executives following an internal probe into “expense and procurement practices.” “As a result of an anonymous tip, our government has uncovered very serious problems with senior government expenses and current practices at AFSC,” Agriculture Minister Oneil Carlier said at […] Read more
Crop insurance rates down in 2016
Malt barley insurable for the first time and organic production is also eligible for coverage this year
Reading Time: < 1 minute Agriculture Financial Services Corporation has made six enhancements to the AgriInsurance programs, including a first of its kind malt barley insurance product. The corporation, provincial and federal governments, and producer groups worked together to make the enhancements based on producer feedback. The malt barley insurance will have a premium price compared to feed barley, but […] Read more
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