Crop insurance consultants say it might make sense for farmers to boost their coverage this year due to changes that make the Enhanced Coverage Option (ECO) more affordable.
Starting this year, the federal subsidy for ECO increases to 65% of the premium cost, up from the previous 44%.

“I think everyone needs to evaluate where their coverage is at and what these additional coverages could do for their farming operation,” said Zach Hyland, a regional crop consultant with Farm Bureau Financial Services. “Choices that were made on crop insurance in the past may not be what you need in 2025. I think utilizing those subsidized dollars through ECO could be dollars well spent.”

added risk protection

The signup deadline for crop insurance is March 15.

Spring projected prices for crop insurance revenue protection policies, which offer protection against price or yield losses, are set based on CME futures contract prices during February. Through Feb. 19, the spring corn price guarantee was $4.71 per bushel and the soybean price guarantee stood at $10.58. Last year’s final spring prices were $4.66 for corn and $11.55 for soybeans.

ECO, along with the Supplemental Coverage Option (SCO), build on top of existing multi-peril crop insurance products to provide an added layer of risk protection. The coverage is based on county-level crop production, offering protection in case yields are impacted by adverse growing conditions in your area.

Traditional crop insurance revenue protection options range from 50% to 85% of insured revenue. By using SCO and ECO products, farmers can purchase additional bands of coverage up to 95%.

“It depends on how comfortable you are with the risk,” said FBFS regional crop consultant Angie Horn. “You can mix and match to see what’s right for you and your operation. Definitely talk to your crop insurance agent about ECO and SCO. It’s a great product.”

Notably, the purchase of SCO requires farmers to elect Price Loss Coverage (PLC) instead of the Agricultural Risk Coverage-County Option (ARC-CO) as their farm bill program choice, Horn said. Analysis by University of Illinois economists suggests that ARC-CO is more likely to trigger support this year than PLC.

other coverage options

FBFS also offers a revenue price option (RPO) crop insurance product that may be a better fit for farms that don’t track with county-based yields, which are the foundation for ECO and SCO coverage, said Hyland.

“RPO is a great way to get that additional coverage you’re looking for, but having the policy be based solely on your own yields and production numbers,” he said. Having more individualized coverage can allow farmers to forward contract grain sales with more confidence, Hyland noted.

Horn and Hyland covered several crop insurance considerations, including specific examples of coverage options, on a recent webinar hosted by Iowa Farm Bureau. They recommend farmers sit down with their own agent to go over options, noting that every farm’s needs are different.

A recording of the webinar is available at www.iowafarmbureau.com/events or by scanning the QR code.