Innovative Crop Insurance Program Launched as the Biotech Yield
Endorsement(SM) Pilot Expands to 11 States Under Revised Risk Management
Biotechnology Endorsement
ST. LOUIS, Aug. 19 /PRNewswire/ -- Farmers in 11 states who plant a
majority of their corn acres using hybrid seeds featuring YieldGard(R) Plus
with Roundup Ready(R) Corn 2, YieldGard VT Triple(R) and YieldGard VT
Triple PRO(TM) technology from Monsanto Company (NYSE: MON) will have an
opportunity to lower their crop insurance premiums in 2009.
The Federal Crop Insurance Corporation (FCIC) Board of Directors of the
United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) recently approved the
expansion of a Risk Management Biotechnology Endorsement for the 2009 crop
year.
The program is an expansion of the 2008 pilot originally approved as
the Biotech Yield Endorsement(SM) Program, or BYE(SM) Program. The BYE(SM)
Program, which includes Monsanto triple stack technologies, will continue
to be offered as part of the Risk Management Biotechnology Endorsement.
In 2009 the program will be available in the following additional
states: Kansas, Michigan, Missouri, Nebraska, Ohio, South Dakota, and
Wisconsin. These expansion states join the original four pilot states of
Illinois, Indiana, Iowa and Minnesota.
The program lowers premiums for non-irrigated corn producers who plant
qualifying hybrids in the approved states and also includes irrigated acres
in Kansas and Nebraska. The cost of a total policy premium during the 2008
BYE(SM) pilot program was reduced on average by more than $3 per acre on
policies such as Actual Production History, Revenue Assurance, and Crop
Production Coverage. Savings with the 2009 pilot are expected to be
similar.
"Seed selection is one of the most important investments a corn grower
can make," said Tim Hennessy for Monsanto Company. "This program recognizes
the reduced annual production risk that comes from using advanced seeds and
technologies that have the possibility to increase yields and places that
value back in the hands of growers."
To be eligible for the premium discount, farmers must plant at least 75
percent of their corn acres on an insured unit basis including replanted
acres to corn hybrids containing YieldGard VT Triple, YieldGard VT Triple
PRO, or YieldGard Plus with Roundup Ready Corn 2 technologies.
Participation in this program does not replace the importance of growers
respecting the EPA-mandated refuge requirements.
BYE(SM) is an innovative crop insurance program originally piloted in
Illinois, Indiana, Iowa and Minnesota in 2008. Total savings for
participating growers is estimated to be nearly $25 million within the
pilot geography in 2008.
The FCIC Board of Directors approved the original BYE(SM) pilot program
on Sept. 12, 2007. The BYE(SM) program was co-submitted to the FCIC by
Monsanto Company and Western Agricultural Insurance Company - Crop 1.
Additional program details regarding the Risk Management Biotechnology
Endorsement are available on the RMA website at http://www.rma.usda.gov.
As one of the originators of the BYE(SM) program, Monsanto Company
spent more than two years gathering and analyzing thousands of data points
from more than three harvest years for the original pilot states.
Substantial data was derived from numerous field trials spanning the corn
production period and was provided in the original BYE(SM) program
submission to USDA. This data demonstrated that Monsanto YieldGard triple
stack technologies deliver more consistent yields, effectively lowering
risk.
About Monsanto
Monsanto Company is a leading global provider of technology-based
solutions and agricultural products that improve farm productivity and food
quality. For more information on Monsanto, see http://www.monsanto.com/.
SOURCE Monsanto
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Related links:
http://www.monsanto.com
http://www.rma.usda.gov
http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/114341.html/
CONTACT:
Mimi Ricketts of Monsanto, +1-314-694-5703
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