Latest Agribusiness Headlines
All the headlines from our Agribusiness Topic Page, ordered by recency.
California Farmers Being Told Drought Could Cut Off Their Water
Jun 17 2021 // Thousands of Central California farmers were warned Tuesday that they could face water cutoffs this summer as the state deals with a drought that already has curtailed federal and state irrigation supplies. The State Water...
California OKs Farmers and Zesty.ai Wildfire Risk Assessments, Will Bring 30K New Homeowners Policies
Jun 16 2021 // California regulators have approved a plan by Farmers Insurance to assess wildfire risk by using a tool that combines artificial intelligence with high-resolution aerial photography. The carrier said the Z-Fire risk...
Danish Wind Giant Finds Unique Solution for Cable Problem Affecting Offshore Farms
Jun 15 2021 // The world’s biggest developer of offshore wind farms has come up with a unique solution to a potentially expensive problem. Denmark’s Orsted A/S is working on a plan to send divers to the sea floor to place a...
U.S. Sending $1 Billion to Farmers Hit by Natural Disasters in 2018-2019
Jun 14 2021 // The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) will release more than $1 billion in payments over the next several weeks starting June 15 for agricultural producers who suffered losses in 2018 and 2019 natural disasters. The...
Worker Dead After Becoming Stuck in Iowa Cattle Farm Manure Tank
Jun 11 2021 // A man died after becoming stuck in a manure tank on an eastern Iowa cattle farm, authorities said. The death occurred on June 8 at a farm in Stockton and was reported by authorities there the next day, the Quad-City Times...
Accelerant Acquires North Carolina’s Agribusiness Risk Underwriters
Jun 10 2021 // Accelerant, a technology-based insurance platform, has acquired Agribusiness Risk Underwriters (ARU), a provider of poultry farm insurance product development, underwriting and loss control. ARU was founded in 2016 in...
Central Oregon Farmers Struggling in Drought
Jun 7 2021 // Cate Havstad-Casad, co-owner of Havstad-Casad Family Farms in Jefferson County, didn’t hold back last week while speaking on a Zoom call with state representatives about the drought conditions affecting farmers in...
Cal/OSHA Cites Foster Farms, Agencies for COVID-19 Violations
Jun 7 2021 // Cal/OSHA has cited Foster Poultry Farms Inc. in Livingston, Calif., and four staffing agencies for not protecting workers from COVID-19. Cal/OSHA opened its inspection after receiving notification that an employee had died...
TAGA Partners with Main Street America on Texas Farm/Ranch Coverage
Jun 4 2021 // Cedar Park, Texas-based Tejas American General Agency (TAGA) has formed an exclusive partnership with Main Street America Insurance, a member of the American Family Insurance group, to distribute its farm and ranch...
Ag Groups Upset with Washington Governor for Farm Worker Rules
May 27 2021 // Some top agriculture groups are upset with Washington Gov. Jay Inslee because farm workers were not covered in last week’s announcement that fully vaccinated employees do not have to wear a mask or socially distance...
HSB Adds Coverages for Smart Farm Technology, Equipment
May 26 2021 // HSB, part of Munich Re. has launched HSB Precision Ag insurance, a suite of coverages for evolving farm data risks, technology and state-of-the-art equipment. Designed for large commercial enterprises and smaller family...
Cal/OSHA Cites Foster Farms, Staffing Agencies for COVID-19 Violations
May 24 2021 // Cal/OSHA has cited Foster Poultry Farms Inc. in Livingston, Calif., and four staffing agencies for not protecting workers from COVID-19. Cal/OSHA opened its inspection after receiving notification that an employee had died...
FBL Financial Shareholders OK Stock Purchase by Farm Bureau P&C Insurance
May 21 2021 // The shareholders of West Des Moines, Iowa-based FBL Financial Group Inc. have approved a previously announced purchase of its stock by Farm Bureau Property & Casualty Insurance Co. (FBPCIC), the company said. Under the...
Washington Creates New Farmworker Safety Team
May 21 2021 // The Washington state Department of Labor and Industries is creating a new team aimed at improving farmworker safety. When fully staffed, the agriculture compliance unit will create 16 new positions, the Yakima Herald...
Severe Water Crisis on Oregon-California Border to Impact Agriculture
May 19 2021 // The water crisis along the California-Oregon border went from dire to catastrophic this week as federal regulators shut off irrigation water to farmers from a critical reservoir and said they would not send extra water to...
Amwins Acquires Equine, Canine Specialist Broker Equisure
May 3 2021 // Specialty broker Amwins Group said it has agreed to acquire Equisure, Inc., a Colorado-based specialist in insurance programs for horse and dog owners, trainers and organizations. Equisure provides professional liability,...
Texas Supreme Court Sides with Farmers Insurance on Mold-Related Policy Changes
May 3 2021 // The Texas Supreme Court on April 9 reversed lower court rulings and found that Farmers Insurance was within its rights when it decided 19 years ago not to renew homeowners’ policies that it feared would have forced...
EU Seeks Review of GMO Rules for Gene-Edited Crops
Apr 30 2021 // BRUSSELS — The European Commission launched a review of EU rules on genetically modified organisms (GMOs) on Thursday, opening the door to a possible loosening of restrictions for plants resulting from gene-editing...
Wisconsin Farm, Manure Spreader to Pay $242K for Pollution Violations
Apr 27 2021 // Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul has reached a $242,000 settlement with a factory farm and a manure applicator to resolve pollution violations stemming from manure spills several years ago. Kaul announced the...
Kenya Startup Pula Offers Insurance to African Farmers Hit by Effects of Climate Change
Apr 20 2021 // KITUI, Kenya – When Kenyan farmer Waki Munyalo’s crop of lentils shrank by three quarters last year because of unusually low rainfall, disaster was averted thanks to a simple remedy that was previously unavailable...
