APPLE, BLUEBERRY, PECAN PROGRAM CHANGES

WASHINGTON, Sep 2, 2004 - USDA’s Risk Management Agency (RMA) today announced the modification of the current apple crop insurance program and the conversion of the pilot programs for blueberries and pecans to permanent programs for the 2005 and succeeding crop years.

“RMA is constantly looking to improve the products and services we provide to agricultural producers,” said RMA Administrator Ross J. Davidson Jr. “Each of these actions will improve the protection to America’s specialty crop farmers.”

Changes to the current apple crop provision include raising the floor of the insurable grade from U.S. cider grade to U.S. No. 1 processing; revising the fresh fruit program to provide quality adjustment for fresh apples that do not grade as U.S. Fancy; and providing better coverage for all perils.

The apple program was also simplified by eliminating some options under the old program, and making sunburn an insurable cause of loss in the basic apple policy as well as in the optional coverage for fresh fruit quality adjustment. Apple growers will also now designate acreage grown for fresh apples and for processing apples. This provides better coverage for fresh apples under the optional coverage for fresh fruit quality adjustment.

Blueberry crop provisions convert the blueberry pilot program to a permanent program, effective for the 2005 and succeeding crop years for all States and counties with blueberry insurance. The new policy takes into account different blueberry types and the variable marketability of damaged blueberries in different parts of the country, by varying the percent-of-damage threshold for mature damaged blueberries. The expansion of the blueberry program to additional States and counties will be considered as sufficient actuarial data are available.

Also converted to a permanent program, the pecan revenue crop provisions are applicable for those growers whose first year of a two-year coverage module is 2005. If an insured’s first year of the two-year coverage module is 2004 (under the pilot program phase), then the pilot policy will still be effective for the 2005 crop year. The permanent program for pecans is effective for the 2005 and succeeding crop years for all States and counties with pecan revenue crop insurance.

These new policies, and all crop policies, can be viewed on the RMA web site at http://www.rma.usda.gov/policies/2005policy.html