Saskatchewan’s general farm organization is asking for an extension to the crop insurance seeding deadline.
The Agricultural Producers Association of Saskatchewan said weather has prevented farmers in some regions from getting into their fields. In particular, southeastern and northeastern areas have been hit hard by heavy snowfall, cool temperatures and excessive rain this spring.
Although different crops have different recommended seeding dates, the final deadline for all crops to be in the ground and qualify for crop insurance is typically June 20.
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President Ian Boxall said the year so far has been difficult. Some farmers struggled last year because it was too dry and now it’s too wet.
He said although APAS doesn’t have a specific date in mind, an extension of even a week would help some farmers.
“The world is waiting for a crop from Saskatchewan,” he said.
“This isn’t just a matter of farmers getting back a return on investment. This is a matter of world food security.”
APAS has asked both the federal and provincial agriculture ministers to recognize the investment farmers are making and consider meeting them halfway with a deadline extension.
Saskatchewan Crop Insurance Corp. said the recommended seeding date has passed for some crops, including chickpeas, hemp and corn. The deadline for soybeans is June 2.
Crops seeded between the recommended date and June 20 are still insured.
The corporation said in a statement it encourages producers to visit the website and use the interactive seeding date tool, which provides the recommended dates for each township and crop, using average days to maturity and average first fall frost dates.
“When late seeding is common in the area, all producers’ yields generally reflect the impact of the late seeding and any claim reductions would be unlikely,” the corporation said.
SCIC also said producers who are considering alternative seeding methods such as broadcast and harrow are expected to follow recommended seeding practices. If the crop doesn’t establish, compensation will not be available.
