Farmers who plant cover crops could be eligible for insurance discounts
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Crop insurance discounts are available to farmers in 50 Indiana counties who planted cover crops in the fall.
The cover crop premium discount program is a joint effort of the Indiana State Department of Agriculture, The Nature Conservancy, Indiana Agriculture Nutrient Alliance and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Risk Management Agency, according to an Indiana Agriculture Department news release.
Farmers who planted cover crops that are not covered by other state or federal incentives can receive a $5 per acre crop insurance premium discount.
“Our agency is thrilled that we were able to roll out this program again thanks to the support from USDA and The Nature Conservancy,” said ISDA Director Don Lamb. “Last year this program was available to 26 counties, and we have nearly doubled that for 2025. Cover crops provide numerous benefits for soil health, but they come at a cost, so this program is key to ensuring farmers have the support necessary to build up their soil health.”
Over the past year 101 farmers participated in the program, adding more than 30,000 acres of cover crops on Indiana farmland, the news release said.
Farmers who planted cover crops in the fall of 2024 are eligible to apply. Applications are due March 15 or when available funds are exhausted. Apply through the Indiana State Department of Agriculture.
The program is funded by a Clean Water Indiana grant and support provided to The Nature Conservancy by the Cummins Foundation and CenterPoint Foundation, the news release said.
Eligible farmers are those whose crops are in the following counties: Bartholomew, Boone, Brown, Clark, Crawford, Daviess, Dearborn, Decatur, Delaware, Dubois, Fayette, Floyd, Franklin, Gibson, Greene, Hamilton, Hancock, Harrison, Hendricks, Henry, Jackson, Jefferson, Jennings, Johnson, Knox, Lawrence, Madison, Marion, Martin, Monroe, Morgan, Ohio, Orange, Owen, Perry, Pike, Posey, Randolph, Ripley, Rush, Scott, Shelby, Spencer, Switzerland, Tipton, Union, Vanderburgh, Warrick, Washington and Wayne.
The use of cover crops improves soil biology, water infiltration and water-holding capacity, the news release said. The practice also prevents nutrients and sediment from running off the farm and into nearby lakes and streams.
Hoosier farmers planted a record 1.7 million acres of cover crops in 2023, the news release said, and apart from corn and soybeans, cover crops are planted on more acres than any other commodity crop in Indiana.