USDA To Offer New Insurance Option For Corn Farmers Who "Split-Apply" Nitrogen

Sep 13, 2021

Corn farmers who "split apply" nitrogen will soon have another option for insurance coverage. Beginning in crop year 2022, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Risk Management Agency (RMA) will offer the Post Application Coverage Endorsement (PACE) in certain states for non-irrigated corn, providing coverage for producers who use this practice that is considered better for natural resources and saves money for producers.

To "split-apply" nitrogen, growers make multiple fertilizer applications during the growing season rather than providing all of the crop's nitrogen requirements with a single treatment before or during planting. The PACE will provide payments for the projected yield lost when producers are unable to apply the in-season nitrogen application.

"USDA is committed to building insurance options that encourage use of practices that are better for the environment and for producers' bottom lines," said RMA Acting Administrator Richard Flournoy. "We are able to offer the PACE thanks to the cooperation of our partners, including the Illinois Corn Growers Association, National Corn Growers Association, Ag-Analytics Technology Company and Meridian Institute."

"Split application" of nitrogen can lead to lower input costs as well as helps prevent runoff or leaching of nutrients into waterways and groundwater. This is because it is used in more targeted amounts over multiple applications, rather than one large application.

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Video: Learning to Wrench From Dad the Hard Way

Harvest is a week out and the farm picked this week to fall apart. The truck needs a battery, the barn curtain's got a problem, and the corn and beans are telling us we're out of time to get it all fixed.

So it's a full day of wrenching. Tork supervises while I get the truck back running, then we're out at the hog barn where one rusted up part has the whole curtain system hung up. Ladder work, cable work, and a little dad-and-son disagreement about the right way to do it. We close it out walking the fields, shelling beans and checking corn, because whether everything's fixed or not, harvest starts when harvest starts.

Chapters: 00:00 Everything breaks the week before harvest 01:00 Tork supervises while I fix the truck 12:30 Out to the barn to find the curtain problem 14:30 One rusty part hung up the whole curtain 20:00 Running the curtain cable from the ladder 24:00 Walking the beans and corn before harvest 26:30 Wrapping up

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