Dry pea winter coverage expansion; farm labor wage rates
Washington Ag Today August 31, 2009 September 30th will be the crop insurance sales closing date for several Pacific Northwest crops. Jo Lynn Seufer with the regional office of USDA’s Risk Management Agency, says the September 30th deadline applies to 2010 Dry Pea with Winter Coverage Option, which does have an expanded area of eligibility for 2010. Seufer: “And in Washington we have Asotin, Douglas, Lincoln and Whitman counties. We worked closely with the Pea and Lentil Council with that expansion. Producers were really requesting that winter coverage. It will be very similar to what the barley and wheat producers have throughout the winter.” The September 30th sales closing date also applies to winter and spring wheat crop insurance, Barley with Winter Coverage Endorsement and 2010 Forage crop insurance. The regional Risk Management office has also announced the expansion of the Livestock Risk Protection Lamb program in all counties in Washington. Producers are encouraged to contact a local livestock insurance agent for details. Sales of LRP- Lamb begin September 14th. The average wage rate paid to farm workers in July of this year in Washington and Oregon was $11.43 an hour. The USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service says that was a dollar and eight cents more per hour than in July of 2008. The national farm labor rate during the same time this year was $10.64. I’m Bob Hoff and that’s Washington Ag Today on the Northwest Ag Information Network.
