MASC Forage Insurance is a suite of programs designed to meet the needs of Manitoba forage producers.
Flexible and affordable, Forage Insurance includes Select Hay Insurance and Basic Hay Insurance, additional coverage options for specific situations, and extra benefits available to producers at no additional premium cost.
For most AgriInsurance programs, premiums are paid 40% by insured producers, 36% by the Government of Canada, and 24% by the Manitoba Government.
Exceptions: the EMI Reduced Deductible Option (participating producers pay entire premium); the highest level of optional EMI coverage (67% participating producers, 20% Canada and 13% Manitoba); and the Hay Disaster Benefit (60% Canada and 40% Manitoba).
Administrative expenses for the AgriInsurance Program are shared 60% by Canada and 40% by Manitoba.
A component of MASC Forage Insurance, Select Hay Insurance provides maximum insurance protection for producers who experience a forage production shortfall or quality loss due to designated perils.
Select Hay Insurance offers production and quality guarantees on five different hay types (alfalfa, alfalfa-grass mixtures, tame grasses, sweet clover and coarse hay), with each type of hay being insured separately for coverage and claim calculations (i.e. no offset between hay types). Coverage choices of 70% or 80% of probable yield are available for each hay type.
Select Hay Insurance fact sheet
Select Hay Insurance Details
Producers enrolled in Select Hay Insurance are also eligible to select the Enhanced Quality Option for insured Alfalfa, the Harvest Flood Option for insured Coarse Hay, and Pasture Insurance, and are automatically qualified for the Hay Disaster Benefit and the Forage Restoration Benefit.
Basic Hay Insurance provides a lower cost whole-farm forage insurance option to insure winter feed supplies against losses due to designated perils.
Basic Hay Insurance offers a combined production guarantee (with no quality guarantee) on all hay types. All hay types (alfalfa, alfalfa-grass mixtures, tame grasses, sweet clover and coarse hay) are combined to have an aggregate production yield for claims, with High Dollar Value and Low Dollar Value coverage available.
Basic Hay Insurance fact sheet
Basic Hay Insurance Details
Producers enrolled in Basic Hay Insurance are also eligible for the Harvest Flood Option for insured coarse hay, and Pasture Insurance, along with being automatically qualified for the Hay Disaster Benefit and the Forage Restoration Benefit.
Producers enrolled in Select Hay Insurance or Basic Hay Insurance can further manage their risk through the following coverage options:
Forage Insurance Options fact sheets
Enhanced Quality Option (Alfalfa) Details
The Enhanced Quality Option for Alfalfa, part of MASC Forage Insurance, provides a higher quality guarantee for Alfalfa acres insured under Select Hay Insurance. The Enhanced Quality Option allows producers to increase their RFV guarantee above 105 (the base guarantee for Alfalfa covered by Select Hay Insurance). All producers selecting the Enhanced Quality Option start with an Assigned RFV of 130. A producer is entitled to a claim if their Alfalfa coverage (in tonnes) has an RFV less than their RFV guarantee.
The Harvest Flood Option, part of MASC's Forage Insurance, provides insurance for the inability to harvest Coarse Hay due to excess moisture. To select this option, Coarse Hay acres must be insured under either Select Hay Insurance or Basic Hay Insurance. The Harvest Flood Option pays a fixed dollar amount for Coarse Hay acres that cannot be harvested due to excess moisture. Acres too wet to harvest are not eligible for production loss compensation. High Dollar and Low Dollar Value options are available.
Producers enrolled in Select Hay Insurance or Basic Hay Insurance are automatically covered by additional benefits at no additional premium cost:
Forage Insurance Benefits fact sheets
Hay Disaster Benefit Details
The Hay Disaster Benefit (HDB) compensates producers for the increased costs of purchasing and transporting replacement hay when there is a severe provincial forage shortfall. Once triggered, this benefit pays additional compensation on any production shortfall experienced by producers enrolled in Select Hay Insurance or Basic Hay Insurance.
Forage Restoration, part of the Forage Insurance and Forage Seed Insurance programs, compensates producers who lose their established hay or forage seed crops due to excessive moisture before October 1. You do not pay a separate premium for Forage Restoration, but you must have Forage Insurance (Basic Hay Insurance or Select Hay Insurance) and/or Forage Seed Insurance. A Forage Insurance acreage that qualifies for a forage restoration payment is also eligible for Forage Insurance coverage for that crop year (if the total forage yield falls below coverage).
MASC also delivers programming that, while not part of Forage Insurance, are of interest to livestock producers and forage growers:
Fact sheets about Related Programs
Forage Establishment Details
Forage Establishment Insurance (FEI) covers losses on eligible forage crops during the period from seeding to establishment. Once seeded, FEI coverage remains in effect until the crop is established or action is taken to destroy the crop prior to June 25 of the year after planting. After the crop is established, you must apply for Forage Insurance or Forage Seed Insurance to continue coverage for a production shortfall as well as a Forage Restoration benefit.
Polycrop Establishment Insurance provides financial assistance to Manitoba farmers if an eligible polycrop fails to establish. Polycrops are the mixture of two or more annual crops, other than Greenfeed, grown simultaneously on the same acreage for purposes of livestock feed, soil restoration, or green manure.
Pasture Insurance provides additional insurance coverage for forage producers to cover potential losses resulting from shortfalls in summer grazing capacity. Coverage is determined on the eligible livestock pastured, and claims are based on the producer's forage production. You must be enrolled in the Forage Insurance program to enroll in the Pasture Insurance program, and the same coverage level must be selected for both programs.
To help reduce the consequences of a pasture shortage, MASC offers the Pasture Days Insurance program to provide financial assistance when grazing shortfalls occur during the summer pasture period.
Forage Seed Insurance provides financial assistance to producers when they experience a significant production shortfall. Coverage is based on your individual 10-year historic yields, and all varieties of alfalfa seed, tall fescue seed, perennial ryegrass seed, and pedigreed timothy seed are insurable (with some qualifications).
Greenfeed Insurance provides coverage for losses due to natural perils on silage and non-silage greenfeed grown in Manitoba. Greenfeed probable yields are adjusted using the Individual Productivity Index (IPI) method.
Perennial Ryegrass Seed Insurance provides compensation to producers of perennial ryegrass seed when they experience a significant production shortfall. In its establishment year, perennial ryegrass seed is also insurable under the Forage Establishment Insurance (FEI) program. Producers who select FEI are insured for winterkill and other causes of loss during the establishment phase.
