Specialty Crops

Specialty crops include fruits and vegetables, tree nuts, dried fruits, and horticulture nursery crops. Individual crop insurance programs are currently available for the following specialty crops:

In addition, Whole-Farm Revenue Protection provides a risk management safety net to all commodities, including specialty crops, under one insurance policy and is the first Federal crop insurance program to be available in every state and county in the United States. It is tailored for any farm with up to $8.5 million in insured revenue and includes farms with specialty or organic commodities (both crops and livestock), or those marketing to local, regional, farm-identity preserved, specialty, or direct markets.

Specialty crops are a priority at RMA, and federal crop insurance coverage for specialty crops has grown steadily over the past 15 years. In 2019, the amount of insurance for specialty crops totaled more than $18 billion.

RMA continues to communicate with producers and other interested parties to identify where there is a need to expand the availability of risk management products to producers. Expansion of products is generally made to growing areas where RMA is aware the crop exists, there is some history or experience of the crops’ performance, and there is significant grower interest in the product. See details on Expansions of Specialty Crops Programs.

If you have feedback on how we can improve coverage for specialty crops, please let us know at SpecialtyCrops@usda.gov.

If you are interested in learning more about insuring your specialty crops, please contact your local RMA specialty crop insurance liaison from the list below:

Regional Office - Liaison

• Billings, MT – Steve Junghans
• Davis, CA – Thalia Barajas
• Jackson, MS – Derrick Johnson
• Oklahoma City, OK – Devin Lolles
• Raleigh, NC – William Barnes
• Spokane, WA – Nick Gans
• Springfield, IL – Adrienne Steinacher
• St. Paul, MN – Craig Christianson
• Topeka, KS – Amanda Whitehurst
• Valdosta, VA – Matthew Wilkin

• January 14, 19, & 22 – Watts & Associated, working under contract with RMA, will conduct virtual listening sessions to study the feasibility of offering a new crop insurance program for controlled environment agriculture. The feedback provided will assist in determining if a crop insurance product or other program can be developed for growers who operate greenhouses and controlled-environment agriculture. The sessions are primarily for growers who operate greenhouses and controlled-environment agriculture and their representatives in the federal crop insurance industry. To receive a formal announcement for a listening session that contains detailed information including time, teleconference number, and how to access the session online, please contact your local RMA Regional Office specialty crop liaison from the list above.
• January 14 – The Specialty Crops Coordinator and St. Paul Specialty Crop Liaison will speak at the Minnesota Fruit & Vegetable Convention. The convention offers a variety of topics, including vegetable production, small fruit production, and marketing designed to be of interest to large and small growers. The RMA staff will present on the Whole-Farm Revenue Protection and Production & Revenue History plans of insurance which are targeted to specialty crop producers.
• January 20 – A Specialist from the Spokane Regional office will attend the “WAVEx Webinar: Does Vineyard Mechanization Pencil Out for You?” This webinar dives into the mechanization benchmark study conducted for the Washington and Oregon wine industries by Dr. Clark Seavert, Oregon State University ag economist, and will show growers how to use the free, online AgBizLogic program to see how mechanization can affect their own profitability.
• January 21 – A Specialist from the Spokane Regional Office will attend the Northwest Cherry Institute's webinar. The webinar will focus on the control of the little cherry virus.  Topics discussed will include tree removal case studies, vector management study results, symptoms, sampling, and a Q&A session. The webinar will focus on cherry production deriving from the Pacific Northwest.

Past Events

• Specialty Crops
• WFRP

• 2020 Specialty Crop Report
• 2019 Specialty Crop Report
• Archived Annual Specialty Crop Reports