Possible Culprit Found & Forage Production Coverage

Possible Culprit Found & Forage Production Coverage

Possible Culprit Found & Forage Production Coverage. I'm Greg Martin with today's Northwest Report.

The decline of honeybee has gotten a lot of press lately but the decline of the bumblebee is equally devastating. A recent study published in the journal Science may have unveiled a culprit in the decline. Climate change has taken its toll on the bumblebee since instead of moving to cooler climates the bumblebees have stayed in their uninhabitable homes and began dying off. Bumblebees, like the honeybee are crucial for pollination of agricultural crops all across the northwest.

USDA's Risk Management Agency announced expanded coverage for forage production under the federal crop insurance program for the 2016 crop year. It's only available in some select counties in the northwest as RMA's Jo Lynne Seufer explains.

SEUFER: What we're most excited about is the announcement of the timothy and the orchard grass types which under the drylands will now be available for the 2016 crop year and will be available in Benewah, Boundary, and Kootenai counties in Idaho and in Pend Oreille, Spokane, and Stevens counties in Washington. We always want to remind producers that the sales closing date to purchase this 2016 crop year policy is September 30th, 2015.

For questions be sure and contact your crop insurance agent.

That's today's Northwest Report. I'm Greg Martin on the Ag Information Network of the West.

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