Hemp Insurance Pilot Program from RMA

USDA is offering Whole-Farm Revenue Protection (WFRP) beginning with the 2020 crop for hemp grown for fiber, flower, or seeds. USDA's Risk Management Agency Administrator Martin Barbre explains what will be covered and what won't.

“It’s going to have a national price level" said Barbre. "We’re going to have T yields, that’s what we are go on to start with. I guess, if produce have two-to-three yields, if they’ve grown under the 2014 farm bill, they may have some more records that may help them get a better yield. But, everyone will have T yields available. One of the things I will point out is, we have a thing called a new farmer provision, that if you’re a new farmer, and basically, that’s a new crop in a new county, you can get 100 percent of T yields, this will not apply to this product. I just want producers to understand this is going to be a very conservative coverage to start with. We want to make sure that we don’t insure more than the value.”

Hemp is still a fledgling industry, and Barbre noted that in 2019, 65 percent of the hemp grown in the U.S. did not have a contract "home." That will be important for producers moving forward.

The pilot insurance program will provide Actual Production History coverage for eligible producers in 21 states: Alabama, California, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and Wisconsin.