By Emma George-Griffin
Farmers spend thousands of dollars per-year on crop insurance — it's a necessary expense to help farmers in case of a negative crop yield. Officials say factoring in soil health could be the key for the next generation of crop insurance.
Farmers in parts of Michigan could be the first in the world to get a discount on crop insurance for having healthy soil, according to state officials.
Michigan’s Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD) is launching the Next Gen Crop Insurance Program for the 2027 crop year.
Tim Boring, the director of MDARD, says the program will base insurance premiums on a farms’ soil health.
“The end goal with this is driving more money to individual farms and into communities here,” Boring said.
According to a news release from MDARD, the program is based on research that shows using sustainable soil practices like reducing tillage, rotating crops and using cover crops help reduce risk associated with losing crops.
"That's going to decrease your weather risk. It's going to improve your profitability," Boring said. "It's going to ultimately lower the riskiness of your production."
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