November 23, 2023 | Updated: December 12, 2023
Agricorp understands that DON is a concern for farmers this year and knows the difficulties this can cause.
Farmers who are affected by DON can work with Agricorp to better understand their program coverage and how it works for their individual situations, so they can make the best decisions for their farm businesses.
Production Insurance responds in two ways
Production Insurance is a yield-based program that can help farmers affected by DON. It can respond in two ways – through a production claim or the salvage benefit.
For a production claim, a farmer's total yield needs to fall below their guaranteed production. Total yields will include any crop affected by DON.
For the corn salvage benefit for DON, two things need to happen for a claim:
- You have corn with DON levels above 3 parts per million (ppm), AND
- Your total corn bushels that are under 3 ppm are below your guaranteed production.
This illustration helps explain how the
salvage benefit works:
Eligibility scenarios for corn salvage benefit for DON
Scenario 1 – The producer’s total yield is under their guaranteed production. Through Production Insurance, the corn salvage benefit would cover all bushels above 5 ppm. The producer would also receive a production claim on the shortfall.
Scenario 2 – The producer’s total yield is over their guaranteed production. Through Production Insurance, the corn salvage benefit would cover bushels over 5 ppm up to their guaranteed production. All bushels over their guaranteed production receive no claim payment.
Scenario 3 – The producer’s total yield is over their guaranteed production. Since the producer’s bushels under 3 ppm exceed their guaranteed production, they receive no claim payment.
The salvage benefit has tiers that reflect extra costs
By compensating farmers for extra costs incurred to harvest DON-affected corn, the salvage benefit provides an incentive for farmers to harvest as early as possible. This can help them harvest before their DON levels get worse.
The salvage benefit takes into account that as DON levels increase, farmers' costs may also increase. That's why the salvage benefit has tiers to reflect these increasing costs.
When corn has DON levels above 3 ppm, there are extra costs to harvest, test, dry, and transport DON-affected corn so that DON levels don't increase. For corn that has DON higher than 5 ppm, the salvage benefit also reflects storage costs.
Harvest delays or concerns about corn quality? Call Agricorp by December 15
Farmers are covered from planting to harvest. They may not be able to harvest corn as early as other years, due to an insured peril, such as weather conditions. As long as customers call Agricorp by December 15, Agricorp can keep coverage active until their final yield and test results are known. The sooner Agricorp gets this information, the sooner any claims can be finalized.
Agricorp is here to help
It's important for farmers to work with Agricorp because each customer's situation is unique to their circumstances, yields, DON levels, and guaranteed production.
