Starting with the 2025 crop year, almond growers will benefit from expanded crop insurance options thanks to recent updates from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). The changes, introduced by the USDA’s Risk Management Agency (RMA), include a significant shift allowing non-contiguous almond orchards to qualify as enterprise units (EUs) for the first time.
Previously, almond orchards that were not adjacent to each other couldn’t be insured as enterprise units, limiting growers’ ability to spread risk and reduce costs. This change provides greater flexibility, enabling almond producers to manage their non-contiguous land parcels more effectively.
The changes will also benefit organic almond growers. The RMA has now made it possible to establish enterprise units specifically by organic farming practice, offering tailored risk management for organic almond production. This reflects the increasing trend of organic farming within the almond industry.
Additionally, the RMA has expanded coverage to include younger almond trees in their fifth leaf year. This update ensures that growers investing in new orchards receive adequate protection during the critical early years of tree production.
Finally, USDA has also increased the premium support for its Enhanced Coverage Option (ECO) to 65%. ECO provides additional area-based coverage for a portion of a producer’s underlying crop insurance policy deductible. ECO can be purchased as an endorsement to Yield Protection, Revenue Protection, and Revenue Protection with the Harvest Price Exclusion or Actual Production History. ECO offers producers a choice of 90 or 95% trigger levels. Trigger is the percentage of expected yield or revenue at which a loss becomes payable. 2025 is the first year that ECO will be available to almond growers.
These updates are part of a broader effort by the USDA to enhance crop insurance options for specialty and organic crops. By addressing the unique needs of almond growers, these changes aim to provide a stronger safety net, helping producers manage the risks associated with farming more effectively.
For almond growers, the expanded coverage starting in 2025 represents a significant improvement in insurance options, offering new opportunities to protect their operations and secure their investments in an increasingly complex agricultural landscape. Crop insurance is sold and delivered solely through private crop insurance agents. A list of crop insurance agents is available at all USDA Service Centers and online at the RMA Agent Locator.
