farmers News

Insurers Say Latest CFA Study Is Flawed; Marketplace Is Highly Competitive

The new auto insurance pricing study from the Consumer Federation of America (CFA) is getting roundly criticized by insurance industry representatives. The representatives say that states’ auto insurance marketplaces are highly competitive, with most drivers having dozens of auto insurers …

Best Affirms Zurich Insurance and Group ‘A+’ Ratings; Outlook Stable

A.M. Best Europe – Rating Services Limited has affirmed the financial strength rating of ‘A+’ (Superior) and issuer credit rating (ICR) of “aa-” of Swiss-based Zurich Insurance Company Limited (ZIC)), the main operating company of Zurich Insurance Group Ltd. Best …

Zurich’s 9-Month Business Operating Profit Flat at $3.2 Billion

The Zurich Insurance Group reported a business operating profit (BOP) of $3.2 billion and net income attributable to shareholders (NIAS) of $2.7 billion for the nine months ended September 30, 2012. The bulletin gave the following highlights for the period: …

Indiana Farm Deaths Fell to 16 in ’11, None with Kids

A new Purdue University report says farm-related deaths in Indiana fell to 16 last year and none involved children for the first time in 13 years. The Indiana Farm fatality Summary says the 2011 deaths compared with 23 the previous …

Midwest Farmers Planted Most of Land Flooded in 2011

Farmers this spring were able to plant all but a few thousand acres of the land deluged by last year’s flooding along on the Missouri River and the intentional breaching of a Mississippi River levee in southeast Missouri, U.S. Department …

U.S. Salmonella Outbreak Tied to Indiana Farm Melons

U.S. health regulators said cantaloupe from Chamberlain Farms in Indiana may be one source of a multi-state outbreak of salmonella that has killed two people and sickened some 178 in the past month. The farm in Owensville in southwest Indiana …

Homeowners Around Minnesota Lake Sue Farmers, Claiming Pollution

Homeowners who live on the shores of Lake Independence near Minneapolis, Minn., say a dairy farm is to blame for turning the lake into a noxious mix of pollutants. Twenty-one individual homeowners and the Lake Independence Citizens Association are suing …

Zurich Insurance Group Posts $2.2 Billion 1st Half Net Income

Zurich Insurance Group posted a $2.2 billion net after tax income available to shareholders. Other selected highlights from the earnings report are as follows: Q2 2012 Q2 2011 Business operating profit ———— $1.131 bn $1.287 bn Total group business volumes …

Feet of Sand Leave Midwest Farms Wasteland After Flooding

Mason Hansen guns his pickup and cranks the steering wheel to spin through sand up to 4 feet high, but this is no day at the beach. Hanson once grew corn and soybeans in the sandy wasteland in western Iowa, …

Nebraska Cattle Liability Bill Set for Hearing

Motorists who strike livestock on Nebraska roads could have a tougher time winning negligence lawsuits against farmers and ranchers, under a bill set for a legislative hearing. A proposal by Ogallala Sen. Ken Schilz would require motorists to show evidence …