Latest Agribusiness Headlines
All the headlines from our Agribusiness Topic Page, ordered by recency.
RAA: U.S. Reinsurers Had Higher Profits, Improved Underwriting Results in 2012
Mar 15 2013 // The Reinsurance Association of America (RAA) said a group of 19 U.S.-based property/casualty reinsurers reported higher net written premiums and net income for 2012 compared to 2011. The RAA said Thursday that a survey of...
USDA Suspends Some Ag Reports Due to Budget Cuts
Mar 15 2013 // The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s statistical arm said it won’t issue some agricultural reports this year because of automatic federal budget cuts, alarming some in the dairy industry who fear the...
Willis Launches Insurance Program for Dairy Farm Industry
Mar 14 2013 // Willis Programs, a specialty business unit of Willis Group Holdings, the global insurance broker, has introduced a customized insurance product for dairy operations. DairyProtector is designed for dairy farms with cows...
Indiana Crop Insurance Payouts for ’12 Losses Top $1B
Mar 14 2013 // Indiana crop insurance payouts for losses during last year’s drought have reached a record $1 billion. Purdue University said that Indiana farmers have received the payouts for 2012 corn, soybean and wheat losses....
Recent Storms Ease Drought in Middle of United States
Mar 13 2013 // Recent rain and snowstorms have eased the grip of the worst U.S. drought in decades in portions of the nation’s midsection, swelling some major inland rivers to near flood stage and drenching some farmland enough to...
Feds Bust $100M North Carolina Crop Insurance Fraud Scheme
Mar 13 2013 // Federal investigators have unraveled a massive scheme among dozens of insurance agents, claims adjusters, brokers and farmers in eastern North Carolina to steal at least $100 million from the government-backed program that...
Farmers Brace for Crop Insurance Cuts
Mar 12 2013 // U.S. farm groups are looking for a formula to lower crop subsidy spending dramatically and end regional infighting ahead of new congressional demands for cuts in a farm bill now costing $10 billion more than...
Indiana Farmers Mutual Insurance Selects Smith as CEO-Elect
Mar 8 2013 // Indiana Farmers Mutual Insurance Co. has named Kimberly O. Smith as CEO-elect. Smith will assume the role of president and CEO on Jan. 1, 2014, upon the retirement of the company’s current president and CEO, Daniel...
Cut Crop Insurance Subsidy by $40 Billion, Say Fiscal Conservatives
Mar 5 2013 // A coalition of fiscal conservatives on Tuesday called for a steep cut in federal subsidies for crop insurance, setting up a clash with U.S. farm groups that see the program as their top priority in a new farm bill. Growers...
2012 North Dakota Crops Valued at Nearly $11B
Mar 5 2013 // The value of crops produced in North Dakota last year totaled almost $11 billion, nearly doubling the $6 billion value of crops produced during flood-plagued 2011. The federal Agriculture Department computes the value by...
Snow and Rain Shrink Drought Area of U.S. Crop Belt
Mar 1 2013 // Light snow fell in much of the drought-stricken U.S. Plains and Midwest crop region early Friday with a bigger storm forecast for late next week, shrinking the area hit by the worst dry spell in 50 years. Agricultural...
Blizzard Eases U.S. Plains Drought but Crops Need More Moisture
Feb 27 2013 // A blizzard this week in the drought-stricken U.S. Plains will moisten soil for major crops, but the snow storm made it difficult to feed cattle and reach some cow herds, an agricultural meteorologist said on...
Court OKs Salmonella Treatment for California Almonds
Feb 26 2013 // An appeals court ruled Friday that federal officials have the authority to require that all California almonds be treated for salmonella following outbreaks linked to almonds from the state. The ruling by the U.S. Court of...
Capital Names Chatterton Vice President in Central California
Feb 25 2013 // Monterey, Calif.-based–Capital Insurance Group named Arne Chatterton vice president of field operations and business relations. The appointment is effective March 1. He was most recently senior vice president of the...
Study: Agriculture Plays Important Role in Utah Economy
Feb 25 2013 // Agriculture continues to play an important role in Utah’s economy, according to a Utah State University study. The study found that when taking into account related industries such as food processing, agriculture...
Farmer Confirmed as South Carolina Commissioner
Feb 25 2013 // The South Carolina Senate voted 29-1 to confirm a retired insurance lobbyist as the state’s new insurance commissioner. Raymond Farmer was appointed by Gov. Nikki Haley to serve as director for the South Carolina...
High Prices, Crop Insurance to Offset Drought Losses for Farmers in 2013: USDA
Feb 25 2013 // The seven-year-old U.S. agricultural boom, driven by record-high commodity prices and painfully tight supplies, is expected to peak this year and then come to an abrupt end as high costs start to bite, the government...
Montana’s Wheat Crop Valued At $1.7B
Feb 22 2013 // Agricultural analysts say Montana’s 2012 wheat crop was valued at a record $1.7 billion, making it the fifth time in six years that the crop has been valued at over $1 billion. The Billings Gazette reported farmers...
Federal Crop Insurance Board Gets 4 New Directors
Feb 22 2013 // Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack recently named four new members of the Federal Crop Insurance Corp. (FCIC) board of directors. The new appointees are James Bardenhagen, Iris Saenz, John F. Finston, and Kenneth Ray Sneed....
No Damage to Florida Citrus Crop from Cold Snap
Feb 20 2013 // Florida came through this week’s cold snap with no major damage to the orange blossoms that will produce next year’s crop, the state’s largest growers’ association said. Temperatures dipped below...
