 "These questions and answers provide valuable information for
producers who want to take advantage of the conservation benefits
cover crops provide, while remaining in compliance with federal crop
insurance rules," said Brian Frieden, director of RMA's regional
office in Springfield.The FAQs are available online at
www.rma.usda.gov/
help/faq/covercrops2014.html.
RMA made changes to provide more flexibility for cover crop
management, due to changing weather conditions and changes in cover
crop practices for the 2014 crop year. To ensure RMA policies were
up to date with evolving cover crop practices, the agency
coordinated with the NRCS and Farm Service Agency through an
interagency work group to develop a consistent, simple and flexible
cover crop policy that can be applied across all USDA agencies.
Specifically, the group was asked to develop cover crop
management guidelines so producers could obtain the conservation
benefits of cover crops while minimizing the risk of reducing yield
in the following crop due to use of water in the soil.
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Using cover crops for conservation purposes has been around
for decades, but these crops are now being embraced on a wider
basis due to the increased understanding of the benefits for
soil quality, nutrient cycles, erosion control, weed management
and soil water availability.
More information about cover crops and crop insurance is
available at www.rma.usda.gov.
[Text from file received from
USDA Risk Management
Agency, Springfield]
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