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Some ARC & PLC signups behind expectations

An FSA office says with Monday’s deadline to sign up for the Agriculture Risk Coverage and Price Loss Coverage program, only 84% of Indiana’s expected farms are signed up.

Risk management advisor and broker Mike North with ever.ag tells Brownfield as farmers enroll today for a marketing year that starts September 1^st, ARC and PLC don’t look very attractive. “When you look at the price data in front of us based on how these two programs are constructed, you likely aren’t going to see a whole lot of opportunity to collect.”

North says it is possible some farmers are looking at the market prices and the probability of little-to-no payouts and choosing to keep some premium money on the farm instead but, “If they choose not to, that’s their own decision but I haven’t had anyone actively suggesting to me that they’re just not going to look at the ARC or PLC this year.”

North says with the markets where they are now, farmers can have a profitable 2021 growing season. “For new-crop corn, and for new crop beans at $12.62, you know whether, by contract and or options, there are lots of ways to come at this market and do so profitably.”

North says he expects some farmers are simply not updating their ARC and PLC preferences and keeping their prior year preferences.