This topic was discussed at our recent Generic Base/Seed Cotton meetings and with the soybean damage some producers have been seeing was worthy of being posted again on the blog.  In summary, use your grain elevator ticket production bushels to sign up for the Market Facilitation Program at FSA rather than production that has been adjusted for crop insurance. Please read the article for details. Chuck

For more information, contact the author at:

Dr. Aaron Smith 

aaron.smith@utk.edu

This year has been a challenging one for soybean producers across Tennessee. Trade disruptions and record national average yield has pushed cash prices well below $8.00 in many locations in Tennessee. Additionally, the extended wet weather in late September has impacted soybean quality. Damage is ranging from minor with small discounts to extensive damage with loads getting rejected at elevators and barge points.

Farmers experiencing any of the following should contact their crop insurance agent immediately and report the issue: 1) notice quality issues in standing soybeans, 2) have cut a portion of a field and had quality dockage at the elevator, 3) or had a load rejected. A crop insurance adjustor is supposed to visit the field(s) in question within 24 hours of filing a claim to determine the extent of the damage and the steps forward.

Quality issues will be difficult to overcome when marketing the crop. For example, damage discounts to cash prices can be $1 to $1.50 for 5 to 9 percent damage, resulting in cash soybean prices well below $7.00 per bushel. Continue reading at Soybean Damage.