The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA’s) Risk Management Agency (RMA) announced a change to prevented-planting provisions for crop insurance that benefits farmers, ranchers and the climate, according to RMA. For the 2021 crop year and subsequent years, RMA will not consider a cover crop planted following a prevented planting claim to be a second crop. Instead, farmers and ranchers can now hay, graze or chop cover crops for silage, haylage or baleage at any time and still receive 100% of the prevented planting payment. Previously, cover crops could only be used for haying, grazing or chopping after Nov. 1. Any use of ...