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Earlier this week, the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced that it is reducing the economic risk of raising two crops on the same land in one year, making it easier for U.S. farmers to grow food in America, increase the food supply and lower food costs for American families. 

To reduce the risk of raising two crops on the same land in one year – a practice known as double cropping –  USDA’s Risk Management Agency is expanding double crop insurance opportunities in nearly 1,500 counties, including 87 of Ohio’s 88 counties, where double cropping is viable.

“We live in a challenging time, but I put my trust in the American farmer and U.S. agriculture to help keep the food we need affordable and available,” said Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack. ”The Biden administration and USDA will continue to find ways to ease burdens on American farmers and lower costs for American families such as expanded double crop options through crop insurance.”  

See the map to locate expanded opportunities for soybeans in Ohio.

Improvements for soybeans include double crop coverage expanding to or streamlined in at least 681 counties, including all of those that were initially targeted for review. While some additional counties were permanently added to be double crop counties, the majority of expansion removed barriers such as requiring production records and streamlined the process to get personalized coverage through a written agreement.  

RMA also will work with the crop insurance industry and farm organizations to highlight the availability and improvements in written agreements as an option for any farmer that grows a crop outside the area where a policy is automatically offered.  

This expansion of coverage was guided by extensive outreach to nearly 70 grower groups covering 28 states. This includes a wide array of stakeholders such as producers, agents, university Extension and other agricultural experts, commodity associations, state departments of agriculture and insurance companies. USDA may add additional counties as it explores these options with farmers this summer, with the final rules being locked in by the fall. Since farmers need to plan ahead for adding a winter crop to a rotation, USDA wanted to make sure they had time to consider this option and consult with local Extension and agriculture experts and their crop insurance agent.   

USDA released additional resources including frequently asked questions as well as the Helping Farmers Address Global Food Insecurity webpage.

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. Producers can learn more about crop insurance and the modern farm safety net at rma.usda.gov.