WINNIPEG – As some farmers raced to get crops in the ground last week before crop insurance seeding deadlines, Manitoba’s farm lobby group was asking for a deadline
extension.
“I don’t think they need a lot of days,” said Don Dewar, a vice-president of Keystone Agricultural Producers.
“Probably to the end of this week would be reasonable.”
The final seeding deadline was June 15 for most cereals, flax and Polish canola for most parts of the province. The deadline for Argentine canola was June 10 in southern regions and June 5 in northern and eastern regions.
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Disaster only
Dewar explained the group wants the government to extend the deadlines only for the disaster level of Manitoba’s new crop insurance program. Under the program, governments share the cost of premiums for 50 percent of a farmers’ long-term average yields.
Dewar said if late-planting farmers were hit by a killing frost, the 50-percent coverage would at least provide a small cushion.
“We think it’s reasonable,” he said.
But a spokesperson for crop insurance said an extension would be unprecedented.
“What’s a deadline if you can keep changing it?” said Brian Halstead.
Extending the deadline would expose the program to “huge risk,” Halstead said.
“These deadlines we have are late compared to the recommended deadlines put out by Manitoba Agriculture.”
Farmers who seed at the deadline will, on average, harvest about 80 percent or less of their long-term average yields and as a result will more likely be able to make claims, Halstead said.
Request considered
The board of directors of the program, who are farmers, met twice last week to consider KAP’s request.
Manitoba’s agriculture minister was unavailable for comment.
Halstead said problem areas in the province as of June 10 included Sperling, Brunkild, Neepawa, Gladstone, Plumas, Glenella, Birch River and The Pas.
“There’s quite a few producers there who had little to maybe one-third of their crop in,” he said, adding hot, sunny conditions for the rest of last week may have helped many farmers make the final deadline.
