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Winterkill coverage – looking back to plan ahead

October 23, 2019

Ontario winter wheat farmers recently completed their 2019 harvest and are preparing for the 2020 growing season. With tractors in the fields planting fall-seeded crops, farmers are now thinking about the risks their winter wheat, winter barley and winter canola crops might face in the year ahead.

Here's a quick look at what happened over the last year.

2019 growing season

2019 has been a difficult year for many winter wheat farmers. Fluctuating winter temperatures across the province led to poor emergence and variable stands of winter wheat in some areas. The cold and wet spring also led to difficult replanting conditions. Yields for soft red winter wheat were 77 bushels per acre, below the Production Insurance average of 85 bushels per acre. For more details, see the map below.

Production Insurance was there for customers. Customers have received $46 million for replanting and yield shortfalls, the most received to date under the winter wheat plan.

Here is a breakdown of those payments:

  • For replanting payments, customers received $114 per damaged acre, totalling $28 million.
  • For yield shortfall payments, customers received $18 million when their harvested yield fell below their guarantee.
Soft red winter wheat: Harvested yields (2019)
Click to view map

Looking ahead to 2020

Agricorp understands the challenges farmers faced this year due to the delayed harvest season.  

Farmers who are interested in protecting their fall-seeded crops with a guaranteed level of production and replanting coverage have until November 8 to apply for Production Insurance.

Still have questions? Agricorp is here to help. Contact Agricorp to talk about available risk management options or learn more at agricorp.com.  

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