In a joint statement, the federal and provincial Agriculture ministers have announced that the Saskatchewan Crop Insurance Corporation is bringing in a measure that will help support producers impacted by a dry spring. 

SCIC is implementing the double low yield appraisal process, which means producers will be able to divert acres of low-yielding eligible crops to be made into additional feed available to graze, bale, or silage.  

“We know that the immediate need is maybe more on the livestock feed side, so these measures really are intended to make more livestock feed available for some of those crops that are deteriorating and are impacted by the dry conditions,” says President and CEO of SCIC, Jeff Morrow.

How it works is when crops are severely damaged, and the appraised yield falls below an established threshold level, the yield is reduced to zero for the Crop Insurance claim. SCIC is doubling the low yield appraisal threshold values, allowing customers to salvage their eligible crops as feed, without negatively impacting future individual coverage.  

“We’ll calculate the claim for the affected acres that are diverted to livestock feed as though they’re zero, but to protect future coverage, we’ll use whatever that appraised yield was it really does help to protect that future coverage for producers.”

For example, the low yield threshold for durum was five bushels per acre, but it will now be ten bushels following the change.

The same initiative was implemented in both 2021 and 2023. It resulted in over half a million acres of additional low yield crop redirected to feed.  

Livestock producers are asked to work directly with neighbouring crop producers to access additional feed.