Manitoba farmers struggling with wet conditions this year will have a few more days to plant soybeans while still receiving full crop insurance coverage through the Manitoba Agricultural Services Corporation (MASC).
A permanent extension to the AgriInsurance seeding deadlines for soybeans was announced by Manitoba Agriculture and MASC on May 20.
The deadline for full coverage of soybeans in area 1 of the province is now June 8 instead of June 6. The deadline for full coverage in areas 2 and 3, meanwhile, has been pushed back to June 4 from May 30. Growers will be eligible for crop insurance at 20 percent lower coverage if planting happens within five days of those deadlines. The deadline in area 4 remains on May 30. (View MASC’s soybean area map here.)
“These changes were made in consultation with the Manitoba Pulse and Soybean Growers Association after a review of available data and agronomic considerations such as growing season length and the use of varieties that are more adapted to Manitoba conditions since the seeding deadlines were last considered,” says a news release from the province.
The changes are not expected to change the risk to the AgriInsurance program, so the province says there will be no change to premiums.
Despite major delays due to excess moisture this spring, the province says MASC is not considering deadline extensions for other crops at this time. The final deadline for many crops is June 20.
The May 17 crop report from Manitoba Agriculture estimated provincial seeding progress at four per cent complete, compared with a five-year average of 50 per cent.