(AFSC.ca)

Crop insurance premiums likely up — but not 60 per cent

Reading Time: 4 minutes Crop insurance premiums are not rising by more than half for Alberta farmers, but they’ll likely have to dig deeper in their pockets. The year-over-year average increase is 22 per cent, not the 60 per cent suggested in a recent Global news report, says the Agriculture Financial Services Corporation. That figure exists in the province’s […] Read more

File photo of an Ontario cherry orchard. (UpdogDesigns/iStock/Getty Images)

Ontario to extend labour-related crop loss coverage

Losses due to COVID-19-related labour disruptions covered

A temporary crop insurance expansion that covers Ontario farms against crop losses due to “on-farm labour disruptions” caused by COVID-19 will be held over for yet another year. Agricorp, the province’s farm program delivery agency, announced in late December the feature first introduced in 2020 will be included again in 2022, at the same coverage […] Read more


Federal Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau, shown here with Craig Riese (l) of Keystone Agricultural Producers and Manitoba Beef Producers president Tyler Fulton, speaks on July 22, 2021 at The Forks in Winnipeg. (Dave Bedard photo)

Tax deferrals, crop insurance changes en route against drought

Assessments underway for AgriRecovery, minister says

Updated — As the federal government looks to manage impacts of ongoing drought conditions in Canada’s West, producers in parts of five provinces can already expect to be eligible for the livestock tax deferral program. Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau announced Thursday in Winnipeg that producers in drought-designated areas of southern Alberta, southeastern British Columbia, northwestern […] Read more

Relatively low payouts in recent years mean the province’s crop insurer can afford to sharply reduce premiums and have enough in reserve to cover “a significant wreck.” (* The size of AFSC’s reserve fund for crop insurance in billions of dollars. The figure for 2020 may be adjusted as it reflects payouts made as of Jan. 31 and processing of the 2020 year is still ongoing).

Big crop insurance premium cut may last for years, says AFSC

Barring a big crop wreck, this year’s 20-per-cent cut in premiums will continue for five years, says CEO

Reading Time: 5 minutes Alberta farmers will see a 20 per cent cut to crop insurance premiums this year — and if all goes well, those savings could continue over the next five years. “We’re providing a premium break right now that will lower the cost to producers in the program — (but) even doing that, we still find […] Read more


AFSC CEO Darryl Kay announced a 20 per cent cut in farmers’ AgriInsurance premiums for the 2021 crop year on Jan. 25. (AFSC video screengrab via YouTube)

Alberta crop insurer taps reserve to cut premiums

AFSC to pare premiums by 20 per cent

The reserve at Alberta’s Crown crop insurance agency will be tapped to offset the premiums charged to farmers for the 2021 crop year, and possibly for longer. The province’s Agriculture Financial Services Corp. (AFSC) said Monday its farmer customers will get a 20 per cent discount on crop insurance premiums this year — which on […] Read more

File photo of an Ontario cherry orchard. (UpdogDesigns/iStock/Getty Images)

Ontario extends lost-labour production insurance

COVID-related coverage held over for 2021 program year

A temporary expansion of Ontario’s AgriInsurance program, to cover losses caused by COVID-19-related short-handedness on the farm, will be held over. The province and federal government on Dec. 22 announced the expansion of coverage will be extended to cover the 2021 program year — and that it will insure production of “additional commodities.” Further details […] Read more


(Scott Bauer photo courtesy ARS/USDA)

Ontario to insure for crop loss due to lack of labour

AgriInsurance offering hailed as a first in Canada

Ontario’s federal/provincial AgriInsurance program has been temporarily expanded to include coronavirus-related labour shortages as a covered cause for crop loss. Producers already enrolled in an eligible production insurance plan and hit by crop losses due to labour disruptions during the 2020 growing season will be able to get further insurance coverage, the Ontario and federal […] Read more

(Dave Bedard photo)

Insurance customers’ contact info dropped into MASC email

Crown crop insurance agency warns of privacy breach

A contact list of crop insurance customers at Manitoba Agricultural Services Corp. has gone out via email to several dozen of the Crown ag insurance agency’s customers. MASC on Monday said a file containing names and contact information of an unspecified number of AgriInsurance clients was “attached in error” to an email sent last Tuesday […] Read more