Alberta cattle producers want changes made to forage and pasture
insurance after this year’s drought revealed inadequacies.
“Cattle producers pay too high a premium for crops intended for forage,
not grain,” said Len Vogelaar of the Alberta Beef Producers.
During the beef producers’ annual meeting in Calgary, delegates
complained of unfairness and inconsistencies across the province as
they waited weeks for adjusters to inspect failed crops and pastures.
The producers passed several resolutions asking the province to change
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the funding formula on pasture insurance to reflect productivity
differences and to increase the number of water measurement sites.
One resolution asked for revisions to forage, crop and lack of moisture
insurance programs to provide more support when there are successive
years of weather problems.
In many instances, forage coverage is too low.
“The maximum coverage we could get on that land for perennial forages
was $20 an acre,” said Elgar Grinde of Holden.
Much of this land could have sustained wheat or canola and the payout
would have been better, he said.
“The insurance coverage is way too low and we would like it to reflect
the same values they could get under the grain insurance program.”
