Economist Says Livestock Producers Need Insurance

American livestock producers need the equivalent of crop insurance. American Farm Bureau Chief Economist John Newton recently made that statement in front of the Crop Insurance and Reinsurance Bureau Meeting.

Newton said that in the 2023 Farm Bill, we will need “careful consideration as to how we are reaching the livestock sector with crop insurance-like policies.” He added there are ways the Farm Bill can written to help get crop insurance money more widely utilized.

With the increasing frequency of bad weather, Newton said the Farm Bill can also be used to develop policies to address situations like the derecho windstorm in Iowa as well as hurricanes and after-harvest disasters. He also told attendees that dairy revenue policies have become a top ten crop insurance product because the crop insurance industry is very efficient in delivering those policies. Adequate labor, immigration reform, the Renewable Fuel Standard, possible changes to the Clean Water Rule that’s also known as Waters of the United States, regulatory reform, and the application of swampbuster rules are all Farm Bureau priorities.

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