Outreach and Education

RMA seeks to make Federal crop insurance available and accessible to as many producers as possible. By engaging with communities that have historically lacked access to resources and education, RMA identifies and addresses any obstacles to their participation in crop insurance.

Producers also need to know how to access and best utilize crop insurance and risk management tools. RMA funds education opportunities and partners with organizations nationwide to deliver risk management training to farmers and ranchers.

Through outreach and education RMA promotes the growth of the Federal crop insurance program and strengthens American agriculture.

RMA’s outreach and education activities primarily serve:

• Historically underserved and limited-resource producers
• Beginning farmers and ranchers
• Climate-smart agriculture
• Urban agriculture
• Livestock, dairy, and aquaculture producers
• Specialty crop and organic operations
• Regions with historically low participation rates in crop insurance

Every year, RMA funds partnerships, known as cooperative agreements, with nonprofits, universities, industry groups and others to deliver risk management education across the country. The training better equips producers to manage business risks. A cooperative agreement requires substantial involvement between RMA and the organization receiving funding. RMA Regional Offices provide technical assistance to funding recipients.

RMA recently announced $2 million is available for cooperative agreements for risk management education and training programs that support farmers, ranchers, including underserved producers, small-scale farmers, organic operations, and climate-smart farm practices.

A broad range of risk management training activities are eligible for cooperative agreement funding consideration, including:

• Training on crop insurance options
• Record keeping
• Financial management
• Non-insurance-based risk management tools and natural disaster preparedness
• Partners can also train farmers at all levels on risk management options that help secure local food systems 

Organizations including universities, county cooperative extension offices, and non-profit organizations are encouraged to apply.

The deadline to submit a proposal was April 24, 2023. However, if your organization is interested in applying for future grant opportunities please e-mail rma.risk-ed@usda.gov for more details. The notice of funding has additional details View Opportunity | GRANTS.GOV. Interested organizations must apply through the Results Verification System at http://rvs.umn.edu.

RMA is offering a new service that assists entities serving underserved agricultural producers and communities with completing applications for funding opportunities.

This service can assist applicants applying for RME grant funding with:

1. Formulating statements of work, performance work statements and statements of objectives.
2. Completing cooperative agreement award and grant applications.
3. Project management for those applicants receiving a cooperative agreement award or grant so that recipients meet all the milestones and reporting obligations, abide by proper funds management and burn-rate, and demonstrate successful execution, monitoring and controlling, and project closeout.   

This service is available to underserved communities, ag-related non-profits, Tribal colleges and universities, Tribal higher education programs, 1890 Land Grant Universities, Historically Black Colleges and Universities, and Hispanic-Serving Agricultural Colleges and Universities.

RMA encourages interested parties to email rma.risk-ed@usda.gov for more details.

RMA hosted two webinars covering the application process for the Risk Management Education Program. For those who were unable to attend the live webinars, here is a recording of the training.

• https://rvs.umn.edu/resources/rma/

RMA engages with producers and grower groups at national conferences, local town halls, meetings, and listening sessions. This dialogue helps address barriers that may hinder some producers from participating in Federal crop insurance. RMA analyzes data and feedback from these interactions to improve services and insurance products.

RMA is offering virtual and in-person workshops for agricultural producers and stakeholders to learn about the latest updates and improvements to the Whole-Farm Revenue Protection (WFRP) and the Micro Farm insurance options. WFRP and Micro Farm are two of the most comprehensive risk management options available. RMA will announce in-person events later this fall. These insurance options are especially important to specialty crop, organic, urban, and direct market producers. Learn more about the workshops.

Groups requesting to meet with RMA should contact their local RMA Regional Office, or email rma.risk-ed@usda.gov.

Since 2021, RMA has invested more than $5 million in partnerships involving more than 25 projects with dozens of awardees (and sub-awardees) to expand outreach and education on crop insurance through the Risk Management Education Partnership Program, which is authorized under Section 522(d) of the Federal Crop Insurance Act. Learn more in our August 11, 2022 news release and July 29, 2021 news release.

Additionally, in 2022, RMA announced a $3.3 million in two partnerships with the Intertribal Agriculture Council (IAC) and the University of Arkansas’ Southern Risk Management Education Center. Learn more in our November 2, 2022 news release.

VIDEO: RMA Announces 2022 Risk Management Education Projects

In states where participation in Federal crop insurance has been historically low, RMA provides funding to help growers manage financial risk through diversification, marketing, or natural resource conservation practices. The Agricultural Management Assistance program, or AMA, is available in 16 states, including Hawaii, Nevada, Utah, Wyoming, West Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine.

Producers in these states can enroll in AMA through their local USDA Service Center. For more information email rma.risk-ed@usda.gov.