Margin Protection
The Margin Protection (MP) plan of insurance is a privately developed product that was submitted to the FCIC Board under Section 508(h) of the Federal Crop Insurance Act. Margin Protection is offered as an area based plan that can be purchased as a stand-alone policy or purchased in conjunction with a Yield Protection or Revenue Protection policy. The plan provides producers with coverage against an unexpected decrease in their operating margin.
Starting in the 2016 crop year, the new Margin Protection (MP) plan will be available in addition to underlying crop insurance policies in select counties starting for corn, rice, soybeans, and spring wheat.
The plan provides coverage that is based on an expected margin, which is the expected area revenue minus the expected area operating costs, for each applicable crop, type and practice. Margin protection is area-based coverage and may not necessarily reflect a producer’s individual experience. The margin protection plan can be purchased by itself, or in conjunction with Yield Protection or Revenue Protection policy.
Margin protection will be available for rice in select Arkansas, California, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, and Texas counties. Coverage is available for spring wheat in select Minnesota, Montana, North Dakota, and South Dakota counties. Corn and soybeans in all Iowa counties will be eligible for margin protection insurance. A producer may choose coverage from 70 percent to 95 percent of their expected margin. A higher level of coverage will have a higher premium rate. The catastrophic (CAT) level of coverage is not available under this policy.