WASHINGTON, April 30, 2021 – The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced today that its Risk Management Agency (RMA) is expanding the Production and Revenue History (PRH) Strawberry Pilot crop insurance program to California. The expansion will be effective for the 2022 and succeeding crop years. Producers may purchase the policy from April 30 through July 1, 2021, or from April 30 through Sept. 30, 2021 depending on the planting period of the strawberries.

“This expansion demonstrates RMA’s commitment to continue to expand crop insurance options to meet the needs of specialty crop producers,” said RMA Acting Administrator Richard Flournoy.

The state of California is the largest strawberry growing region in the United States, representing 90% of U.S. production. RMA estimates potential insurance liability of $120 million in California.

PRH was developed for specialty crop producers and provides an opportunity for producers to obtain coverage based on their own personal production and revenue history, which results in a more accurate and tailored insurance product. The PRH strawberry pilot policy offers producers a choice between yield protection or one of two plans of revenue protection—Revenue or Revenue Plus. The coverage accounts for each producer’s unique marketing practices, including any price premiums, whether that be from organic practices, unique crop types or varieties or superior marketing ability.

The PRH program also:

• Enables producers to insure their acreage under a Catastrophic policy under the yield protection plan, which is a low level of coverage available for a single administrative fee payment.
• Offers optional units by geographic location, crop type, organic practice, and planting period.
• Provides the following planting periods for California.
  • A summer planting period for Fresno and Merced counties.
  • A winter planting period for Monterey and Santa Cruz counties.
  • Both a winter and summer planting period for Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo and Ventura counties.

Crop insurance is sold and delivered solely through private crop insurance agents. A list of crop insurance agents is available at all USDA Service Centers and online at the RMA Agent Locator. Learn more about crop insurance and the modern farm safety net at rma.usda.gov.

USDA touches the lives of all Americans each day in so many positive ways. In the Biden-Harris Administration, USDA is transforming America’s food system with a greater focus on more resilient local and regional food production, fairer markets for all producers, ensuring access to healthy and nutritious food in all communities, building new markets and streams of income for farmers and producers using climate smart food and forestry practices, making historic investments in infrastructure and clean energy capabilities in rural America, and committing to equity across the Department by removing systemic barriers and building a workforce more representative of America. To learn more, visit www.usda.gov.

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