SPEIALTY CROPS 

REPORT

2021

Report to Congress

Delivered by the Federal Crop Insurance Corporation as required by 

section 508(a)(6)(A) & (B) of the Federal Crop Insurance Act

SPECIALTY CROPS 

REPORT

2021
2

TABLE OF CONTENTS

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY__________________________________________ 3

2018 Farm Bill Requirements ______________________________________ 5

New Policy or Plan of Insurance – No Existing Policy _____________________________ 5

New Policy or Plan of Insurance – Existing Policy ________________________________ 6

Expansions of Policies or Insurance Plans _____________________________________ 7

Whole Farm Revenue Program Modifications___________________________________ 9

Specialty Crop Liaisons ___________________________________________________ 11

Specialty Crop Website ___________________________________________________ 12

Research, Contracts, Studies, Initiatives_____________________________ 13

Apples ________________________________________________________________ 13

Guar __________________________________________________________________ 14

Greenhouse ____________________________________________________________ 14

Local Foods ____________________________________________________________ 15

Production & Revenue History______________________________________________ 15

Specialty Crop Weather Index ______________________________________________ 16

Industry Outreach________________________________________________________ 16

Program Modifications/Improvements_______________________________ 18

Hemp _________________________________________________________________ 19

Hurricane Insurance Protection – Wind Index __________________________________ 19

Conclusion____________________________________________________ 23
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The 2021 Specialty Crops Report is submitted by the Risk Management Agency (RMA) on behalf of 

the Federal Crop Insurance Corporation (FCIC) in response to Section 508(a)(6)(A) & (B) of the 

Federal Crop Insurance Act (Act), as amended. The statute requires that the Federal Crop Insurance 

Corporation report to Congress on the progress and expected timetable for expanding crop insurance 

coverage to specialty crops:

“508 (6) ADDITION OF NEW AND SPECIALTY CROPS (INCLUDING VALUE-ADDED CROPS). —

 

(A) ANNUAL REVIEW.—Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of the Agriculture 

Improvement Act of 2018, and annually thereafter, the manager of the Corporation shall prepare, 

to the maximum extent practicable, based on data shared from the noninsured crop disaster 

assistance program established by section 196 of the Federal Agriculture Improvement and 

Reform Act of 1996 (7 U.S.C. 7333), written agreements, or other data, and present to the Board 

not less than 1 of each of the following:

(i) Research and development for a policy or plan of insurance for a commodity for which 

there is no existing policy or plan of insurance.

(ii) Expansion of an existing policy or plan of insurance to additional counties or States, 

including malting barley endorsements or contract options.

(iii) Research and development for a new policy or plan of insurance, or endorsement, for 

commodities with existing policies or plans of insurance, such as dollar plans.

 

(B) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this paragraph, and annually 

thereafter, the Corporation shall report to Congress on the progress and expected timetable for 

expanding crop insurance coverage under this subtitle to new and specialty crops.”

This report fulfills subsection (B) above and will capture how RMA’s ongoing efforts also meet the 

requirements for specialty crops, as specified in the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 (Farm Bill).

Federal crop insurance is the foremost risk management solution for producers and ranchers, 

providing effective coverage that helps them recover after severe weather and bad years of 

production. RMA is committed to expanding crop insurance options for specialty crop producers to 

help promote sustainable growth for the industry and ensure that a critical safety net is available for 

the greatest number of producers.

RMA classifies specialty crops as fruits and vegetables, tree nuts, dried fruits, and horticulture nursery 

crops (including floriculture). This classification is consistent with the definition of specialty crops as 
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specified in the Specialty Crops Competitiveness Act of 2004 (7 U.S.C. 1621 note), as modified by the 

Agricultural Act of 2014.

The Federal crop insurance program helped farmers and ranchers weather a tough 2020, one marked

with a pandemic and multiple natural disasters. Producers with crop insurance coverage received 

more than $5.8 billion in indemnities in crop year 2020. The year was beset with several named 

storms, including 7 hurricane events that triggered payment under the Hurricane Insurance Protection 

– Wind Index (HIP-WI) product, which is available for over 70 crops, including 49 specialty crops. The 

total indemnities paid out in 2020 under HIP-WI was over $187 million, including over $11 million for 

specialty crops.

To help specialty crop producers amid the pandemic, RMA authorized many crop insurance 

flexibilities, including extended deadlines, and waived certain requirements to ensure continuity of 

crop insurance services. For example, RMA extended the deadline for Approved Insurance Providers 

(AIP) to complete required pre-acceptance inspection reports used to establish insurance of perennial 

crops, such as oranges and orange trees as well as pecans and Florida citrus fruit and trees. 

Additionally, beginning with the 2022 crop year, organic crop producers are allowed to report acreage 

as certified organic or as acreage in transition to organic, when the producer

certifies they requested a written certification from a certifying agent on or 

before the applicable acreage reporting date. This is a permanent COVID-19 

relief measure to aid organic producers in the issues they face.

Despite the pandemic, USDA continued to conduct outreach with specialty crop 

producers, producer groups, universities, and other stakeholders through 

innovative approaches to social distancing and adoption of virtual meetings 

across the nation. Such efforts afforded producers and other interested parties 

the opportunity to provide feedback concerning interest in new crop insurance 

products or needed enhancements to existing products.

Though Federal crop insurance coverage for specialty crops has grown steadily 

over the past years, RMA will continually monitor the needs for additional coverage options for this 

agricultural sector. This report highlights key accomplishments and expected timetable for expanding 

crop insurance coverage for specialty crop producers, including:

• 2018 Farm Bill Requirements

• Research, Contracts, Studies, Initiatives 

• Industry Outreach

• Specialty Crop Program Improvements

OVER THE PAST 

FEW DECADES, 

SPECIALTY 

CROP INSURED 

LIABILITIES ROSE 

FROM $1 BILLION 

IN 1990 TO OVER

$20 BILLION IN 

2020. 
5

2018 FARM BILL REQUIREMENTS

The following highlights the progress made in expanding crop insurance coverage to specialty crops. 

The achievements are organized according to the requirements listed in the 2018 Farm Bill.

The Act has established two pathways for the development of new crop insurance programs. RMA 

may internally develop products, and private parties may also develop products under the authority of 

section 508(h) of the Act. The ability of private party development of new products has helped to 

create many new risk management safety net insurance products for producers. With intensive 

producer and producer group input, these products provide risk management tools that are needed by 

producers.

New Policy or Plan of Insurance – No Existing Policy

This category describes research and development of a policy or plan of insurance 

for a commodity for which no policy or plan of insurance exists. 

California Citrus Tree

On August 15, 2019, the Federal Crop Insurance Corporation Board of Directors (Board) approved the 

California Citrus Tree program. The program was privately developed and submitted by an advocacy 

organization representing California citrus growers. The program is effective for the 2021 and 

succeeding crop years in select California counties. 

The program allows producers to insure their young trees—from planting to 4 years—against the three 

largest threats: freeze, fire, and failure of irrigation water supply due to drought.

Growers requested a program to insure against losses 

specifically to their young trees, which are most vulnerable to 

freeze. In the past decade, the California citrus tree industry has 

encountered unusual weather patterns, including freezing 

temperatures that damage young trees. According to one 

producer, the loss of young trees due to freeze or drought can set 

them back up to three years. 

California’s citrus industry is valued at over $3 billion, supporting 

270,000 acres of citrus orchards. The California Citrus Tree

program provides citrus producers with a much-desired risk 

management solution. 
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Features of the program include:

• Coverage for grapefruit, lemons, mandarins, oranges, tangelos, tangerines, and any other citrus 

trees designated in the actuarial documents

• Separate insurance policies for each commodity. For example, producers can insure all their 

lemon trees and none of their grapefruit trees. This also allows varying coverage levels by 

commodity.

• Occurrence Loss Option, which is also available in the other tree-based dollar products, is 

available for an additional premium. The option shifts the deductible in the policy from a unit basis 

to a per-tree basis and starts indemnity payments once the damage threshold is met.

• Insureds with freeze protection are eligible for a premium discount.

New Policy or Plan of Insurance – Existing Policy

This category describes research and development for a policy, plan of insurance, or 

endorsement for commodities with an existing policy or plan of insurance. 

Enhanced Coverage Option

Enhanced Coverage Option (ECO) is a privately developed product identified to address an urgent 

need for improved crop insurance options amid growing discomfort with increased reliance of 

agriculture on ad hoc disaster aid. ECO was developed to provide producers flexibility in managing 

risks and allow them to secure operating credit and eliminate the need for ad hoc disaster and trade

assistance programs.

ECO was approved by the Board on August 20, 2020 and is available for the 2021 crop year 

nationwide for 31 crops, including dry beans and dry peas.

ECO provides producers optional area-based coverage in addition to their election of Supplemental 

Coverage Option and individual coverage. Producers are offered three choices: ECO-Revenue, 

ECO-Revenue Harvest Price Option, and ECO-Yield. As federal law limits insurance for individual 

farm yields at 85 percent coverage levels, ECO offers coverage up to 95 percent, at a county level to 

enhance producers’ total coverage. Each ECO option is offered in two coverage level bands—

90%-86% and 95%-86%.

ECO payments are determined by county average revenue or yield and are not affected by the 

producer’s indemnity payment received under their underlying policy. Therefore, it is possible for the 

producer to experience an individual loss but to not receive an ECO payment, or vice-versa. The 

producer may also receive a loss on both the underlying policy and ECO.
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The developer of ECO has indicated their intent to request expansion of ECO to additional specialty 

crops. They plan to consult groups representing specialty crop producers in all major producing areas 

that may be served by the product. The developer intends to submit their request for expansion in 

subsequent years once they have completed a report documenting their consultation efforts and 

research.

Expansions of Policies or Insurance Plans

This category describes expansions of existing policies or plans of insurance to 

additional counties or states. 

RMA continually communicates with producers and other interested parties to identify where there is a 

need to expand the availability of risk management products to producers. Expansion of products is 

generally made to growing areas where RMA is aware the crop exists, there is some history or 

experience of the crops’ performance, and there is significant grower interest in the product. Program 

expansion requests are often initiated by producers at the local level and channeled through RMA’s 

Regional Offices for approval. 

Following lists expansions of specialty crop programs for the 2021 reinsurance year (a reinsurance 

year is the period July 1 of one year to June 30 of the next year).

2021 REINSURANCE YEAR COUNTY EXPANSIONS FOR SPECIALTY CROPS 

Crop State Counties

Blueberries Oregon Polk

Cucumbers Indiana Johnson, Shelby

Dry Beans Iowa Howard

Minnesota Clearwater, Goodhue

Texas Brooks, Duval, Hidalgo, Jim Wells, Kleberg

Washington Klickitat

Wisconsin Adams, Portage, Waupaca

Dry Peas Arizona La Paz, Maricopa, Pinal

California Colusa, Fresno, Kings, Monterey, San Joaquin, Solano, 

Stanislaus, Sutter, Yolo

Idaho Franklin

Minnesota Blue Earth, Clearwater, Faribault, Norman

Fresh Market Tomatoes Connecticut Hartford, New Haven

Grapes Texas Yoakum

Green Peas Maryland Wicomico
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New Jersey Salem

New York Cattaraugus

Hemp Arizona Cochise, Graham, Greenlee, La Paz, Maricopa, Mohave, 

Pima, Pinal, Yuma

Arkansas Arkansas, Ashley, Benton, Chicot, Clark, Clay, Conway, 

Craighead, Crawford, Crittenden, Cross, Desha, Drew, 

Faulkner, Franklin, Greene, Independence, Jackson, 

Jefferson, Johnson, Lafayette, Lawrence, Lee, Lincoln, 

Little River, Logan, Lonoke, Miller, Mississippi, Monroe, 

Perry, Phillips, Poinsett, Pope, Prairie, Pulaski, 

Randolph, St Francis, Sebastian, White, Woodruff, Yell

Colorado Conejos, La Plata, Moffat, Routt, San Miguel

Kentucky Kenton, Whitley

Michigan Houghton

Montana Granite

Nevada Churchill, Eureka, Lander

New Mexico San Miguel, Valencia

Tennessee Scott

Texas Anderson, Andrews, Aransas, Armstrong, Atascosa, 

Austin, Bailey, Baylor, Bee, Bell, Bexar, Borden, Bosque, 

Bowie, Brazoria, Brazos, Briscoe, Brooks, Brown, 

Burleson, Caldwell, Calhoun, Callahan, Cameron, 

Carson, Castro, Chambers, Childress, Clay, Cochran, 

Coke, Coleman, Collin, Collingsworth, Colorado, 

Comanche, Concho, Cooke, Cottle, Crosby, Culberson, 

Dallam, Dallas, Dawson, Deaf Smith, Delta, Denton, De 

Witt, Dickens, Dimmit, Donley, Duval, Ellis, El Paso, 

Erath, Falls, Fannin, Fisher, Floyd, Foard, Fort Bend, 

Frio, Gaines, Garza, Glasscock, Goliad, Gray, Grayson, 

Guadalupe, Hale, Hall, Hansford, Hardeman, Harris, 

Hartley, Haskell, Hays, Hemphill, Hidalgo, Hill, Hockley, 

Houston, Howard, Hudspeth, Hunt, Hutchinson, Irion, 

Jackson, Jefferson, Jim Wells, Jones, Karnes, Kaufman, 

Kent, King, Kleberg, Knox, Lamar, Lamb, La Salle, 

Liberty, Limestone, Lipscomb, Live Oak, Lubbock, Lynn, 

Mcculloch, Mclennan, Mcmullen, Martin, Matagorda, 

Medina, Midland, Milam, Mitchell, Moore, Motley, 
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Navarro, Nolan, Nueces, Ochiltree, Oldham, Parmer, 

Pecos, Potter, Randall, Reagan, Red River, Reeves, 

Refugio, Roberts, Robertson, Runnels, San Patricio, 

Schleicher, Scurry, Shackelford, Sherman, Starr, 

Stonewall, Swisher, Taylor, Terry, Throckmorton, Titus, 

Tom Green, Travis, Upton, Uvalde, Victoria, Walker, 

Washington, Webb, Wharton, Wheeler, Wichita, 

Wilbarger, Willacy, Williamson, Wilson, Yoakum, Young, 

Zapata, Zavala

Potatoes Wisconsin Iowa, Richland

Processing Beans Minnesota Houston

New York Chautauqua

Oregon Multnomah

Pennsylvania Tioga

Sweet Corn Iowa Webster

Whole Farm Revenue Program Modifications

The 2018 Farm Bill required RMA to research ways to reduce paperwork and recordkeeping 

requirements for direct marketed commodities under the Whole Farm Revenue Protection (WFRP) 

plan of insurance. In addition, RMA worked with stakeholders to identify other improvements to WFRP 

not related to the Farm Bill. On August 20, 2020, the FCIC Board approved the following changes to 

WFRP for the 2021 crop year:

• Allow direct market producers to report two or more direct marketed commodities using a new 

combined direct marketing commodity code.

o Producers no longer must provide 

revenue records by commodity, which 

can be a burden for highly diversified 

producers. Producers can now report a 

combined expected revenue for all 

commodities within the combined 

commodity code.

o The combined direct-marketed 

commodities will count as two 

commodities in calculating the 

diversification premium discount.
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o Revenue history will be based on reported revenue from the combined direct-marketed 

commodities and total acres planted to those commodities.

• Allow the current policy year’s premium to be offset with only the current policy year’s indemnity 

payment. For example, previously, an insured’s indemnity for the 2020 crop year would be 

reduced by the premiums for the current 2021 crop year. With the policy change, the indemnity for 

the current 2021 crop year is reduced by premiums for the 2021 crop year.

• Revise the requirements to determine the producer’s expected yield. The producer’s expected 

yield of the commodity is now based on the average yield produced on the farm in the past four 

years instead of the past three years. This change helps producers offset a potential bad 

production year by increasing the number of years on which the expected yield is based. 

• Exclude price decline that occurred during the previous insured period as a carryover insured 

cause of loss. Preventing price decline losses to carry over into the following year inhibits adverse 

selection. 

WFRP is an important product for producers of any crop. Following highlights participation in the 

program over time. RMA will continue to work with growers to determine ways to improve the program 

to meet needs.

 WFRP Participation

2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020

Policies 1,122 2,203 2,731 2,477 2,160 2,023

Liability $1.146 B $2.330 B $2.842 B $2,664 B $2,338 B $2,251 B

Avg Crops per Policy 3.34 3.71 4.01 4.04 3.86 3.73

Different Crops Insured 213 258 289 300 278 284

 

0

500

1,000

1,500

2,000

2,500

3,000

WFRP Policies Earning Premium
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Specialty Crop Liaisons

The Specialty Crops Coordinator primarily works to address the needs of specialty crop producers. 

Many of the Coordinator’s efforts have been directed toward facilitating the research and development 

of new specialty crop policies internally and through contracts. The Coordinator also participates in 

meetings, listening sessions, speaking engagements, and other contacts with growers, grower 

association representatives, the insurance industry, and USDA partners. These efforts were made to 

communicate new and existing specialty crops programs and gather information on needs and 

interests of producers.

The 2018 Farm Bill required the Specialty Crops Coordinator to designate a Specialty Crops Liaison in 

each RMA regional office and share the contact information of the Liaisons with specialty crop 

producers. The Coordinator worked with the RMA Regional Offices to designate a Specialty Crops 

Liaison in each office. The Liaisons serve as a main point of contact for local specialty crop producers 

to ensure that local issues, concerns, and differences are considered. The Coordinator formed a 

workgroup with the Liaisons that meets periodically to discuss specific producer needs. 

Recommendations for new product development and expansions are discussed for consideration in 

adoption. The Coordinator and Liaisons also work with specialty crop producers and other

stakeholders to complete a Production and Revenue History (PRH) questionnaire for crops for which 

there’s interest in crop insurance; particularly, revenue coverage. PRH is a potential effective risk 

management tool for additional specialty crops, given its design that provides coverage based on the 

producer’s own personal production and revenue history; thereby, providing a much more accurate 

insurance guarantee. The PRH questionnaire seeks specific information about the crop’s market, 

industry, and pricing structure to help determine whether the PRH plan is appropriate for the crop. 

Following are crops for which the questionnaire is being completed.

Crop Targeted Area 

Blueberries Michigan

Fresh Market Tomatoes Michigan

Hazelnuts Oregon

Peppers Michigan

Pongamia Trees Florida

Sweet Cherries Michigan

Tart Cherries Michigan
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Specialty Crop Website

The 2018 Farm Bill required the Specialty Crops Coordinator to establish a website focused on the 

efforts of the Corporation to provide and expand crop insurance for specialty crop producers. A web 

page dedicated to specialty crops efforts was established and accessible from RMA’s public website. 

The website includes the names and contact information for the Specialty Crop Liaisons for producers 

to reach for information concerning specialty crop insurance coverage. The website allows the public 

to submit general inquiries and comments concerning specialty crop insurance. The Specialty Crops 

Coordinator has fielded several inquiries from specialty crop producers regarding requests for new 

crop insurance coverage or other interests. The web page includes information concerning outreach 

efforts conducted since 2019 with specialty crop producers and other stakeholders for those interested 

in participating. Additionally, information concerning expansions of existing specialty crop program is 

included on the site. The site is located at: https://rma.usda.gov/en/Topics/Specialty-Crops.
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RESEARCH, CONTRACTS, STUDIES, 

INITIATIVES

Apples

In February 2018, RMA awarded a contract to perform various tasks concerning the apple crop 

insurance program. The first task included a comprehensive review of the program, with a focus on 

the Quality Option in areas where the program has experienced consistent high loss ratios. The 

review provided recommended changes to the program to improve producers’ coverage, addressed

program vulnerabilities, and suggested that RMA further examine the feasibility of potentially insuring 

apples via a revenue component. RMA initiated an additional task for the contractor to complete a 

study to evaluate the feasibility of developing an alternative plan of insurance, potentially a revenue 

option, that could provide improved coverage options for apple producers. The contractor conducted 

14 virtual listening sessions for producers and insurance stakeholders located in apple growing 

regions across the country from late April through mid-May 2020 to assess their interest in alternative 

plans of insurance. Though a revenue option was determined potentially feasible in some areas, 

overall, there was a not a great deal of producer interest in such coverage. The contractor provided 

RMA the data gathering report on June 26, 2020. 

RMA used the findings and recommendations from the contracted study to aid in drafting proposed 

changes to the apple program. While drafting the proposed changes, RMA conducted more than 23 

listening sessions with producers, producer organizations including USApple’s Risk Management 

Task Force, industry representatives, and insurance stakeholders, asking for input and providing 

proposed change updates. RMA modified the proposed changes based on the feedback received. 

The proposed apple policy changes include allowing the insured to elect different coverage levels and 

percent of price elections by type, which will allow producers to manage individual coverage and price 

risk more effectively. Proposed changes will also allow producers’ premium rates to be reduced in 

response to orchard management practices that typically occur after the acreage reporting date and 

decrease an orchard’s productivity. Other proposed changes are intended to strengthen policy 

language to address program vulnerabilities that have caused increased loss ratios and rising 

premium costs.

RMA is planning to issue a Proposed Rule with request for comment followed by a Final Rule. The 

proposed changes are expected to be made available for the 2023 crop year.
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Guar

In May 2020, RMA awarded a contract to gather data and perform analysis on the feasibility of 

developing a marketable and viable pilot crop insurance policy for guar producers. The focus of this 

effort is the top guar producing states in the U.S., namely, western parts of Texas and Oklahoma. 

Guar is a drought-tolerant annual legume that has historically been used for both food and feed. 

Today, the crop is primarily grown for the gum that can be retrieved from seeds, which has several 

industrial and food processing applications. Of particular importance is the use of guar gum in 

hydraulic fracking, which constitutes a large portion of the U.S. demand for guar gum. The contractor 

conducted listening sessions with producers, insurance providers, and producer representatives to 

determine potential interest in an insurance program and recommended solutions. Based on the 

results of the data gathering effort, RMA exercised the contract option to develop a guar crop 

insurance program. During development, the contractor will determine all necessary components of a 

viable program, including appropriate crop provisions, relevant program dates, and pricing and rating 

methodologies. The draft program development submission package is due from the contractor in 

May 2021.

Greenhouse

The 2018 Farm Bill directed RMA to carry out or contract research and development of a policy to 

insure production in a controlled environment, such as a greenhouse. The Farm Bill also required 

RMA review risk related to Ralstonia, which is a disease that affects the roots of certain plants. As 

there is no approved treatment for this disease, infected plants must be destroyed.

In November 2019, RMA implemented a contract to conduct research and analysis to assist RMA in 

determining the type of risk management product and/or potential new risk management tools that 

might be used to provide protection to meet the needs of nursery greenhouse producers. 

In February 2021, the contractor delivered their draft research report. The report included results of 3 

virtual listening sessions conducted in January 2021, followed by six additional follow-up discussions 

with individuals in the industry, which included information about the risks in their industry such as 

plant diseases, production, and price risks. In the listening sessions and throughout the research 

effort, the contractor regularly encountered support for an Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service 

(APHIS)-based program to indemnify losses due to destruction orders for plants, which would be 

similar to the compensation program under the Animal Health Protection Act. Legislative options 

for providing such benefits to producers will likely need to be explored. The contractor also 

recommended a new inventory-based crop insurance product, which establishes the guarantee based 

on inventory values in the operation, like RMA’s Nursery Value Select (NVS) program.
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RMA is working collaboratively with the contractor to develop a new single-peril inventory-based 

insurance product. The development effort for NVS successfully used a collaborative approach 

where the contractor gathered data, performed analysis, and identified issues related to 

potentially providing coverage, and submitted a proposed policy. RMA is targeting to make a policy 

available for purchase in 2023.

Local Foods

The 2018 Farm Bill directed RMA to carry out or contract a study to determine the feasibility of a policy 

to insure production of certain commodities, including floriculture, fruits and vegetables, and livestock

that is targeted toward local consumers and markets.

In June 2020, RMA implemented a contract to assess the feasibility of insuring local food production. 

In January 2021, the contractor provided results of a research study that included the following

objectives:

• Researching and providing an overview of the local foods industry;

• Evaluating existing policies to determine if it is possible to modify such programs or develop a 

similar program that will provide insurance coverage for local food producers;

• Obtaining industry perception of existing RMA programs, as they relate to local food producers 

and provide recommendations or modifications for existing crop insurance programs; and

• Providing recommendations to improve coverage options for local food producers.

RMA is looking into the feasibility of creating provisions or an endorsement to WFRP targeted at local 

food producers. Depending on the implementation, this is targeted for as early as the 2022 crop year. 

Due to the diversification practices of local food producers, a whole farm approach was determined 

the best option. This option involves the least administrative and cost risk, as RMA would implement 

the necessary program changes. Modifications under consideration include minimizing recordkeeping 

requirements and increasing the diversification discounts and coverage levels available to local food 

producers. RMA plans to collaborate with other USDA agencies (e.g., Agricultural Marketing Service 

and Farm Services Agency) in any future program development for producers of local foods due to 

their familiarity with the industry and risk mitigation needs of these producers.

Production & Revenue History

RMA developed the Production and Revenue History (PRH) plan of insurance to target specialty crops 

that lack viable public price information. A key feature of the plan is that the coverage is based on the 

producer’s personal yield and revenue history, which makes for a much more accurate and tailored 

insurance guarantee for the producer. The plan was first implemented for strawberries in select 

Florida counties for the 2021 crop year. It will be expanded to strawberries in select California 
16

counties for the 2022 crop year. The plan is intended to replace the existing Actual Revenue History 

(ARH) plan of insurance, which has not been well received, with an average of five policies earning 

premium each year since the program was implemented for the 2012 crop year. Experience data also 

indicated insured producers were interested in Catastrophic coverage, which is unavailable under the 

ARH plan but is available under the PRH plan.

In February 2021, RMA implemented a 5-year contract to expand PRH to additional crops and areas. 

The first crops targeted for expansion are fresh market peppers, fresh market sweet corn, and fresh 

market tomatoes in the areas where they are currently insured under the Dollar plan of insurance 

(Dollar Plan). An evaluation of the Dollar Plan identified problems with the program design as well as 

the availability of data needed to operate the program which PRH should be better suited for. RMA 

intends to expand PRH to additional crops and areas under the contract, as determined appropriate. 

RMA has identified potential candidates for expansion through initial assessments of other crops for 

which interest in expansion has been expressed by grower representatives.

Specialty Crop Weather Index

RMA is pursuing a contract to perform research to be used in potential development of a specialty 

crop Weather Index plan of insurance. The research will include an analysis of available data and 

tools that can be used in the development of a specialty crop weather index crop insurance program. 

Weather is generally the greatest peril affecting yields and production revenues for specialty crops. A 

Weather Index plan would insure specialty crops against weather perils. RMA has received a great 

deal of interest in such a product from grower representatives and other stakeholders in multiple 

regions. A potential product may be modeled after a broader family of financial instruments that are 

sometimes called “index-based risk transfer products.” These products make payments conditional on 

whether the realized value of a specified index exceeds or falls short of a pre-defined threshold. Index 

insurance products pay indemnities based not on the actual realized losses on the insured unit, but 

rather on some objective index that is highly correlated with realized losses. In this case, the program 

would include underlying indices that are specific weather variables. This is similar to the existing 

Rainfall Index products that utilize a rainfall index to determine precipitation for coverage purposes 

and does not measure production or loss of products themselves. RMA anticipates award of the 

contracted research in summer 2021.

Industry Outreach

RMA continually conducts outreach with producers and groups representing producers of agricultural 

commodities to improve producers’ awareness of available risk management products and identify 

unmet risk management needs. Although RMA has halted many in-person outreach efforts, it has the 
17

flexibility to conduct outreach virtually. Such efforts afford the opportunity to directly hear from 

growers of their unique risk management needs and challenges they face.

Following highlights outreach conducted since the 2020 report to Congress was submitted.

Date(s) Location Participating RMA 

Office(s) Purpose 

4/6/21 Virtual Kansas City

Presented overview of specialty crop 

insurance to USDA Fruit & Vegetable Advisory 

Committee

2/17/21 Virtual Kansas City, Valdosta 

Regional Office

Participate in town hall hosted by Florida 

Department of Agriculture & Consumer 

Services with Florida specialty crop producers

1/14/21, 

1/19/21, 

1/22/21

Virtual Kansas City

Listening sessions to research feasibility of 

offering crop insurance program for controlled 

environment agriculture

1/20/21 Virtual Spokane Regional 

Office

Participate in webinar on the mechanization 

benchmark study conducted for the 

Washington and Oregon wine industries

1/21/21 Virtual Spokane Regional 

Office

Participate in webinar by the Northwest Cherry 

Institute on the control of the little cherry virus 

in the Pacific Northwest

1/14/21 Virtual St. Paul Regional 

Office

Present on WFRP and PRH at the Minnesota 

Fruit & Vegetable Convention

9/30/20 Virtual Kansas City

Listening session to solicit feedback about 

crop insurance coverage options for producers 

selling to local food markets

9/28/20 –

9/29/20

Brownfield, TX 

and Vernon, TX

Kansas City; Oklahoma 

Regional Office

In-person listening sessions to discuss 

potential crop insurance coverage options for 

Guar

8/28/20, 

8/31/20

Virtual Kansas City; Oklahoma 

Regional Office

Listening sessions for producers and other 

stakeholders to discuss potential crop 

insurance coverage options for Guar

8/17/20 –

9/3/20

Virtual Kansas City Listening sessions to producers and ranchers 

to solicit feedback for Local Foods contract

6/17/20 –

7/28/20

Virtual

Kansas City and 

various RMA regional 

offices

Listening sessions for apple growers to 

discuss proposed changes to the Apple crop 

insurance program

3/10/20 Kansas City Kansas City

Meeting with members of National Sustainable 

Agriculture Coalition to discuss WFRP 

improvements
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PROGRAM 

MODIFICATIONS/IMPROVEMENTS

RMA continually refines existing specialty crop programs to improve coverage and increase 

participation. Coverage for specialty crops overall has grown steadily over the past 15 years. In 2020, 

the amount of insurance for specialty crops totaled more than $20 billion, as shown in the chart below. 

Liability for the Nursery category has decreased over the past years. This can be primarily attributed 

to dissatisfaction with the Nursery crop insurance program due to its complexity and onerous 

paperwork requirements. In response to feedback, RMA developed the Nursery Value Select 

program for the 2021 and succeeding crop years to address criticisms of the Nursery program,

including simplifying administrative requirements and loss adjustment procedures. RMA continually 

refines existing specialty crop programs to improve coverage and increase participation. Following 

are recently implemented improvements to programs.

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

18

20

22

2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020

Liability ($Billion)

FCIC Program Growth for Specialty Crops

Fruits/Nuts/Trees Nursery Vegetables AGR / WFRP
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Hemp

A privately developed multi-peril Hemp insurance program was implemented for the 2020 and 

succeeding crop years and provides coverage against loss of yield due to insurable causes of loss for 

hemp grown for fiber, grain, or cannabidiol oil. The program was initially offered for 1,331 counties in 

21 states.

Following program release, the developer received numerous requests for expansion of the program, 

as well as other feedback. The developer proposed to extend the benefits of the Hemp program to 

additional areas and proposed program enhancements to provide clarifications to the policy and 

procedures. The proposed expansion was intended to provide growers with a risk management tool 

that reduces some of the stress inherent with producing a crop in an industry that is evolving rapidly. 

In addition, Federal crop insurance provides lenders with a measure of comfort giving producers 

expanded access to additional capital and lending opportunities.

On August 20, 2020, the Board approved the following proposed modifications to the Hemp crop 

insurance program. The modifications are applicable for the 2021 and succeeding crop years.

• Expansion to new states in select counties: Arizona, Arkansas, Nevada, and Texas

• Expansion to 13 new counties in states with existing coverage: Conejos, CO; La Plata, CO; 

Moffat, CO; Routt, CO; San Miguel, CO; Kenton, KY; Whitley, KY; Houghton, MI; Granite, MT; 

San Miguel, NM; Valencia, NM; Scott, TN; Alleghany, VA

• Modified the definition of Processor to include a broker, for the purpose of meeting the processor 

contractor requirements for the grain type

• Adjusted program, reporting, and billing dates to match dates of similar crops by region

Hurricane Insurance Protection – Wind Index

RMA developed and implemented the Hurricane Insurance Protection – Wind Index (HIP-WI) 

insurance plan to protect against crop losses from hurricanes. The program was made available 

beginning with the 2020 hurricane season.

HIP-WI is structured as an endorsement that attaches to certain policies. The endorsement provides

coverage against the deductible portion of the policy up to 95 percent of the expected crop value when

hurricane-force winds occur in a county or adjacent county resulting from a named hurricane as 

determined and reported by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The full amount of 

the HIP-WI policy coverage is paid if a hurricane event occurs. HIP-WI was implemented for 70 crops, 

including 49 specialty crops, in the vicinity of the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean, as well as 

Hawaii.
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The covered specialty crops are: All other citrus trees, apples, avocado trees, avocados, banana 

trees, bananas, blueberries, cabbage, carambola trees, clary sage, coffee, coffee trees, cranberries, 

cucumbers, fresh market beans, fresh market sweet corn, fresh market tomatoes, grapefruit, grapefruit 

trees, grapes, green peas, hemp, lemon trees, lemons, lime trees, limes, macadamia nuts, 

macadamia trees, mandarins/tangerines, mango trees, nursery (FG&C), nursery value select, onions, 

orange trees, oranges, papaya, papaya trees, peaches, pecan trees, pecans, peppers, potatoes, 

processing beans, sweet corn, sweet potatoes, tangelos, tangerine trees, tangors, and tomatoes.

The covered area includes 22 states and 960 counties. The 2020 reinsurance year was one of the 

most active hurricane seasons on record, making the new policy well timed. The year resulted in over 

17,000 policies for $649 million in liability. Seven hurricane events have triggered payment under the 

endorsement resulting in $187.2 million in total indemnity in 2020, including over $11 million for 

specialty crops.

State Indemnity 

North Carolina $78,632,986

Louisiana $29,629,617

Texas $24,821,137

South Carolina $20,663,534

Alabama $24,378,028

Florida $6,571,956

Mississippi $2,415,571

Hawaii $100,132

Total $187,212,961 

Specialty Crop Indemnity 

Blueberries $9,787,728

Coffee $23,930

Coffee Trees $76,202

Grapes $176,869

Hemp $13,842

Oranges $24,805

Orange Trees $1,020,578

Pecans $261,715

Total $11,385,669 
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Expansion to Strawberries and other Programs

Since PRH was implemented for strawberries in Florida for the 2021 crop year, RMA received

requests from strawberry growers for access to HIP-WI in conjunction with the PRH policy.

RMA expects there will likely be additional products and crops added over time, and, therefore,

requested the Board allow it to expand HIP-WI to any new programs or future expansions where 

appropriate. On February 24, 2021, the Board authorized RMA to expand HIP-WI to strawberries as 

well as other new crop programs and existing crop program expansions, as appropriate. The first 

sales closing date for PRH strawberries in Florida is August 31.

Coverage for Tropical Storms

The 2018 Farm Bill required a feasibility study be conducted for the analysis and development of an 

insurance plan to protect against crop losses from hurricane and tropical storms. RMA is exploring 

adding coverage to HIP-WI for tropical storms. RMA is currently engaged in consulting with 

stakeholders about how best to design the coverage. This additional coverage is targeted for the 2023 

crop year.

Identifying Crop Insurance Needs

Identification of market potential is helpful in the determination of future priorities for product 

development, maintenance, and improvements to the Federal Crop insurance program for specialty 

crop producers. Determining producer needs is one of the first steps in this process. RMA utilizes 

several sources in determining insurance needs, as listed below: 

• The RMA Regional Offices (ROs) continually provide recommendations for new program 

development based on their knowledge of local grower needs.

• RMA acquires Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP) data to assess potential 

crops to expand crop insurance to.

• Individual grower group associations or broad associations often convey interest in crop insurance 

options for producers. 

• The RMA Perennial and Specialty Crops Workgroup meets regularly to discuss issues with 

perennial and specialty crops which can help identify needed program improvements. The 

workgroup also includes external industry members who provide valuable feedback that aids in

program improvements.

• RMA maintains a list of uninsured crops based on National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS)

data which can be used to help identify crops for new product development.

Input from 

ROs NAP Data

Input from 

Grower 

Groups

RMA Perennial 

& Specialty 

Crops 

Workgroup

NASS data AIPs and 

Agents
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• Industry groups representing AIPs and agents provide recommendations for program expansions 

and improvements as well as new crop insurance products.
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CONCLUSION 

RMA is committed to continue its focus on expanding crop insurance options 

for specialty crop producers. A stronger and more diverse federal crop 

insurance program provides America’s diverse agricultural producers with a 

reliable farm safety net that keeps the economy strong even after severe 

weather destroys crops. RMA has expanded options for specialty crop 

producers and availability over the years, focusing on improved options for 

small and diverse farm operations. Though Federal crop insurance coverage 

for specialty crops has grown steadily over time, RMA will proactively monitor 

the needs for additional coverage options for this agricultural sector. 

 

See the Appendix for the information below concerning specialty crop 

insurance programs. 

 

• Market penetration by categories of fruits/nuts and vegetables

• RMA/NASS specialty crop comparison tables

• Top specialty crops in liabilities