Crop insurance can keep a farmer from being wiped out if a crop fails, so Cooperative Extension of St. Lawrence County is urging the county’s agricultural community to look into possible changes in the program that might affect them.

According to the United States Senate Committee on Agriculture Nutrition and Forestry, every five years, Congress passes a bundle of legislation called the Agriculture Reform, Food and Jobs Act, or “Farm Bill,” that sets national agriculture, nutrition, conservation, and forestry policy.

The last Farm Bill was passed in 2008, and expires on Sept. 30. Some changes have been made to the 2012 Farm Bill, which awaits approval from the House of Representatives.

One change in the bill that may affect North Country farmers involves government subsidies. The proposed bill suggests shifting resources that supplement government crop subsidies toward increasing government subsidies for crop insurance premiums.

If this bill passes, the government will only pay certain portions of an insurance premium, and to receive any kind of financial assistance farmers will be required to have crop insurance.

In St. Lawrence County, corn, dairy, nursery, oats, sweet corn, pasture and hayland, forage production and forage seeding all qualify for insurance, and soybeans might qualify too.

There are many different kinds of crop insurance, each of which is calculated differently. More information about risk management and crop insurance coverage can be found online at www.agriculture.ny.gov.

Another item to be aware of is that the Milk Income Loss Contract Program (MILC) has a fiscal year that does not follow the standard timeline. Changes that usually would occur at the end of September in the MILC program will take place Aug. 30 this year. This will mean that MILC payments will go from significant in August to nothing on Sept. 1. Be aware that MILC will expire with the current Farm Bill on Sept. 30.

Farming is a high risk business and it pays to be informed about the different programs available to help farmers.

New crop insurance is being offered in New York every year and more changes will be coming with the new Farm Bill.

Contact Cornell Cooperative Extension of St. Lawrence County agents at 379-9192 for more information or to schedule a workshop or presentation for your group.