Grains of Knowledge

The Annual Pork Congress Delivers Again!

This year, the Ohio Professional Pork Producers Symposium was held in Columbus, Ohio.  This event was sponsored by The Ohio State University Extension, Pork Checkoff, OhioPork.org, and the Ohio Pork Producers Council and was attended by many, including team members from Westfield Insurance Agribusiness Division.

The event had many exibitors as well as informative sessions for pork producers, suppliers and pork lovers.  The line up of speakers, presenters and topics included:

• Pen Gestation - Finding the Option that is Right for You by Thomas Parsons, VMD, PhD, University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine
•  Herd Management Factors That Influence Whole Herd Feed Efficiency, Dr. Omarh Mendoza, The Maschhoffs, Illinois
• What Does the Future Hold For Ohio Pork Producers?  Dr. Chris Hurt, Professor, Department of Agricultural Economics, Purdue University, Indiana

  There were several breakout sessions that included topics such as:

• Is China going to eat our lunch?  Good or bad for pork producers?
• Weaning 30 P/S/Y with electronic sow feeding
• Packer audits - will your farm pass?
• Feeding and barn management practice that maximize feed efficiency
• Immunological castration of pigs: What is it and how does it work?
• Phosphorus levels in rivers and lakes: Do livestock producers contribute to the problem?

Lunch was preceded by an awards presentation.  The overall feedback from the sessions was very positive.  The sessions provided good lessons on timely and relevant topics.  Always good to enjoy a nice pork lunch too.  For more information on this event, visit www.ohiopork.org

 Stacey Bruce is a region leader for the small/speciality segment of Westfield's Agribusiness Division  based out of Westfield Center, Ohio, the corporate headquarters of Westfield Insurance.

Prepared for a crisis? What's your plan?

No one likes to think about the worst case scenarios that could potentially impact your business, family or organization.  However, thinking through a crisis that could occur and preparing a plan as to how you will address a crisis can be critical in mitigating the potential impact of an unforseen event.  Westfield recently partnered with Validus Services to deliver a day-long Crisis Management Training session to several of our Farm customers in Minnesota. 

From our standpoint, part of our business is to respond to the loss you have suffered.  However, an insurance policy is not a substitute for a sound crisis management plan.  Knowing in advance how you will respond to a crisis can go a long way in mitigating extent of the crisis and mitigating the impact to your business.  Production agriculture faces a wide variety of risks that includes damage to property, worker safety, food safety, public relation risks, and various liability exposures. 

Thinking through your "worst case list' is a start to developing a crisis management plan.  What are the worst case scenarios that have some likelihood of occurring and could significantly impact your ability to continue to operate your farm? 

Consider developing a crisis management plan as a part of your entire risk management program.  Your agent and insurance carrier should be able to provide you some insight on what you need to get started.  Purdue University and the Dairy Herd Network are also two areas that have some good resources on their websites.                                                                

The best crisis management plan is one that hopefully never has to be used.  However, in the event of a crisis, having a plan will  help to keep your family, employees, animals,and operations better protected as you have already taken the time to plan out your response. 

Images Source: Flickr

Craig Welsh is the Agribusiness Division Leader at Westfield Insurance.  You can connect with Craig on Twitter @cdwelsh and on LinkedIn @ Craig Welsh.

 

Will melting snow cause a backup in your basement?

Over the last few months, many of us across the midwest experienced heavy snowfall, which when combined with frigid temperatures, resulted in mounds of snow that seemed to stay frozen for months.  Over the last few days, we've had our first considerable warm up, and while most of us welcome the chirping birds and crocuses getting ready to emerge from beneath the soil, we are also dealing with standing water as a result of melted snow. 

For farmers, standing water can be a major annoyance ... our fields are too soft to drive across with tractors, livestock aren't allowed in the pasture because they'll tear up the grass, and mud seems to appear in every farm driveway which creates a filthy environment for pickups, equipment and ATVs.  Another problem that can also arise has to do with water getting into the basement of your home from a back up of either a sewer or drain.  Take a look at the article below from the Insurance Information Institute and check your policy to make sure it includes this optional coverage!

Sewer Backup (select the link at the bottom to read the entire article)

Backed up sewers can wreak havoc on a home, causing thousands of dollars in damage to floors, walls, furniture and electrical systems.  For homes that have been severely damaged and are uninhabitable, homeowners policies may provide Loss of Use coverage, which provides reimbursement for lodging, food and other living expenses you may incur as a result of having to live outside of your home. Loss of Use coverage also reimburses you for the lost rental income if you rent out part of the house.

via www2.iii.org

Photo Source: joanren.blogspot.com

Kristin Taylor is a farm and commercial agribusiness underwriter with the Western Region of Westfield’s AgriBusiness Division. She is located at the company’s headquarters in Westfield Center, Ohio and holds an underwriting responsibility for the states of Illinois and Iowa.

Peak Season Coverage: The 5th Season in Ag

Spring, summer, fall and winter are what most refer to when discussing the four seasons.  In agriculture, every now and then the fifth or "peak season" is overlooked when it comes to insurance. 

The peak season endorsement allows farmers the opportunity to purchase additional property insurance for specified cyclical periods that occur on a regular basis each year.  To activate this coverage, the customer would purchase a base limit for either their scheduled or unscheduled farm personal property (aka - their farm blanket) and then would purchase additional limits for specific times during the year(both the amounts and the dates of the increase are indicated in the endorsement) when inventories are higher than usual.

Examples of when this coverage is useful typically center around seasonal events like harvest when the value of grain storage is higher than normal or in early winter when farmers have purchased and are storing seed and fertilizer for use in the spring. 

The benefit of using the peak season endorsement is that it allows farmers to plan out their insurance needs ahead of time versus having to remember to call their agent to increase / decrease coverage throughout the year as seasonal events happen. 

 One challenge of using this endorsement is that it's important to make sure that you include an adequate number of days before and after the peak period to account for early harvest and longer than usual grain storage due to heavy snowfall or poor prices in winter.  Another example of why an adequate number of days is necessary would account for early fertilizer and seed deliveries combined with later than usual planting due to a wet spring.  If the peak days are miscalculated and a loss occurs before or after the coverage period is in effect, the loss won't likely be paid in full. 

 

 

Author Kristin Taylor is a farm and commercial agribusiness underwriter with the Western Region of Westfield’s AgriBusiness Division. She is located at the company’s headquarters in Westfield Center, Ohio and holds an underwriting responsibility for the states of Illinois and Iowa.

(Photo Source: Flickr)

 

Is your Farm Estate protected?

Do you have a high value farm estate?  Do you have a home on your farm that is valued at $250,000 or greater?  If so, look no further than your local independent agent's office and ask for the new High Value Home endorsement from Westfield Insurance to protect your assets.

Westfield Insurance is pleased to introduce this product that has many extras for your special needs.  Some additional coverages and highlights include:

• Disappearing deductible
• Coverages for damage to fences up to $25,000
• Increased identity theft coverage up to $20,000
• Expanded theft coverage for jewlery, watches and furs
• Sump overflow and water back up optional limits up to $100,000 (some state limitations)
• $2,000 automatic coverage for watercraft, their equipment, furnishings, outboard engine's or motors
• Enhanced coverage on refrigerated contents up to $10,000

Other coverages and details are available.  For more information on this coverage and to find out if this is right for you, please contact your local Westfield Insurance independent agent or visit the Agribusiness section on our website.

Stacey Bruce is an Agribusiness Region Leader at Westfield Insurance.  You can connect with Stacey on Twitter @moo2you1 and on LinkedIn @ Stacey Bruce.

The 1,810 Pound Pumpkin

Did you know this year the world's largest pumpkin was 1,810.5 pounds?  The monster pumpkin was grown by a Wisconsin man named Chris Stevens.  He presented his giant at the Stillwater Harvest fest in Stillwater, Minnesota in October.  Thank you to the folks at www.pumpkinnook.com for this photo:

If this inspires you to try to grow your own pumpkins, please read on!

Pumpkin growing does not require a large amount of space nor a super green thumb.  What it requires is rich soil, lots of water and fertilizer.  You can start the seeds indoors or outside after the first frost.   Pumpkins are vining plants and they can spread far very quickly.  Make sure to follow the spacing recommendations on the packets.  After planting, water very well and then again two to four days later.

The planting of the seeds depend on the variety of pumpkin.  Miniatures can be placed closer together while other seeds can be planted in hills four to six feet apart.  Pumpkins are big feeders and prefer rich soil, with lots of compost and manure. Fertilize on a regular basis and consider using a high nitrogen formula in early plant growth.  

Pumpkins require a lot of water so try to keep the soil moist (but not wet) at all times. Try not to get the leaves wet as this may lead to mildew in your pumpkin patch.  Pumpkin's are

 

One last tip...when a pumpkin is bright orange, that means it is ripe for the picking.

Enjoy the fall and happy pumpkin planting.   

 

Stacey Bruce is an Agribusiness Region Leader at Westfield Insurance.  You can connect with Stacey on Twitter @moo2you1 and on Linked In @ Stacey Bruce.