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3 Life Insurance Options to Secure Your Farm

3 Life Insurance Options to Secure Your Farm

The following information is provided by Nationwide®, the #1 farm and ranch insurer in the U.S.*

Life insurance can protect your family and your business in more ways than you might think. If you’re a beginning farmer, it can provide your family with financial stability in your absence. It is also instrumental in helping your farm continue after illness, retirement or if you pass away. It can even help provide needed funds should something happen to one of your operation’s most valuable employees. Here are three examples of how the right life insurance coverage can protect you:

1. Term policies can help beginning farmers

If you’re younger or just beginning your farm, you’ve likely taken on some debt… maybe even a hefty amount of it. After covering your family’s living expenses and paying on your farm’s debt, there may not be much left over in your family’s bank account.

That challenge is exactly why term insurance is so important. Term policies provide life insurance coverage at the lowest cost and can help your family cover your personal or business debts. It can also create an emergency cash fund or provide needed financial support while your family gets back on their feet.

“As a farmer just getting started, you may have incurred personal debt in order to finance the growth of your farm. This debt has a life of its own and will survive your premature passing. This debt means that less of your assets will be available to support your loved ones,” according to Nationwide Advanced Consulting Group DirectorSteve Hamilton. “A level term life insurance policy that protects your family through the life of your loan is an easy and cost-effective way to help make sure your debt does not burden your loved ones after your passing.”

2. Universal life policies for established farmers

If you’re a more established farmer with a higher-value operation, there’s an additional benefit that can come with a permanent life insurance policy. Whether you’re concerned about protecting your family or your savings, universal life policies can provide:

  • Permanent death benefit protection
  • Income tax-free death benefits for your family
  • Additional source of savings with tax benefits
  • Source of tax-free supplemental income in retirement
 
“More established farm operators can consider adding a permanent, cash-accumulating life insurance policy to their personal balance sheet,” said Hamilton. “Farms, land and equipment all possess varying degrees of liquidity risk. If your family needs funds quickly after your passing, an asset may not sell quickly or profitably when there’s a lack of demand. Whether the policy allows your family to bide time for a better offeror allows your family to keep the tractor running if you’re not around, a permanent, cash-accumulating life insurance policy can become the cornerstone of a farming family’s financial plan. 
 

3. A survivorship life policy for the future of your farm 

When planning the future of your operation, the right life insurance policy can help ease the financial pains of transitioning the farm. A survivorship life insurance policy is an option to consider.

“A buyout of your farm funded with a survivorship life insurance policy can ensure that your farm’s successors have the funds to purchase your operation or that your spouse and children that may not work the farm receive the financial benefits of your life’s work,” Hamilton added. “Even if the next generation is not your successor, a buyout funded with life insurance amongst future or current co-owners can help the farm continue operating while your family is financially taken care of.

”If you’re interested in exploring your life insurance options to secure your family’s or your farm’s financial future, don’t wait.Get connected to a financial specialist who can help protect your farm, family and future by visiting Nationwide.com/YourLand. 

*A.M. Best Market Share Report 2020. Products underwritten by Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company and Affiliated Companies. Not all Nationwide affiliated companies are mutual companies, and not all Nationwide members are insured by a mutual company. Subject to underwriting guidelines, review and approval. Products and discounts not available to all persons in all states. Nationwide Investment Services Corporation, member FINRA. Nationwide, the Nationwide N and Eagle and Nationwide is on your side are service marks of Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company. ©2021 Nationwide

Maryland Farm Bureau Hosts Legislative Day

maryland farm bureau hosts legislative day
Annual Day in Annapolis Brings Farmers, Legislators Together

DAVIDSONVILLE, MD. (February 10, 2022) — Maryland Farm Bureau (MDFB) hosted its annual Day in Annapolis yesterday to give its members the opportunity to stay up-to-date on legislation affecting farming and rural communities and to visit with their legislators. The format, virtual due to the Maryland Capitol’s pandemic closure, allowed for nearly 50 legislators and 120 farmers to interact, with an issues briefing, questions, and break-out sessions.

“We know how important these bills are — especially their implications for Maryland’s farming community. Thank you to all of the legislators and staff for taking the time to learn how these issues affect our ability to grow and raise food, fiber, and renewable fuel, as well,” said Wayne Stafford, MDFB president.

Proposed legislation that MDFB is currently following are bills moving pesticide regulation from Maryland Department of Agriculture (MDA) to Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE); deer and wildlife damage to crops and privately owned farmland; permitting and air quality regulations; and the right to repair farm equipment.

“The right-to-repair bill helps to ensure that all sizes of farms can continue to operate to meet time-sensitive needs of crops, and aren’t dependent on huge companies,” said Delegate Lorig Charkoudian. “I know large equipment companies are fighting this, so we should look out for the small family farmer. I’m 100% with Maryland Farm Bureau on this and happy to continue to move that forward.”

MDFB’s list of priority bills include the following, which it supports:

  • SB 296/HB 558: Establishes a definition for “agritourism” with regards to land use. It adds camping and incidental outdoor stays to the state’s definition of agritourism.
  • HB 562: Requires farm equipment manufacturers to provide farmers the capability and tools needed to repair their own modern farm equipment, so that they are not dependent on over-committed technical service providers during the busiest times of the year for farming.
  • Various bills establishing funds to help urban agriculture, such as HB 855 with water and power infrastructure.
  • SB 800: Sales and use tax exemption for agricultural electricity.
  • Various bills allowing the management of deer/wildlife on private and state-owned property to reduce widespread destruction of crops, such as SB 497/HB 592, and in Baltimore County SB 427/HB 682.
  • SB 582: Provides that if a landowner directly invites or permits an individual to use their property for hunting, the invited individual assumes all responsibility and liability for their own safety.

 

A number of bills introduced during this session would make farming more difficult in Maryland.

“Several of these bills would cause undue burden and hardship on Maryland farmers while costs related to operating a farm today continue to rise,” said Colby Ferguson, MDFB director of government and public relations. “Some of these bills ignore decades of conservation management efforts and best management practices farmers have put in place to protect air and water quality and soil health. Farmers build a livelihood for themselves and their families right next to or on the same land in which they grow crops and raise livestock; being good stewards of the environment is always in their best interest.”

Maryland Farm Bureau opposes the following bills:

  • HB 11: Excludes many energy sources derived from agricultural production from the Renewable Energy Portfolio Standard.
  • SB 268/HB 387: Would move pesticide regulation from MDA to MDE.
  • HB 596: Grants Marylanders standing to intervene on any state application process if they believe another’s action or permit interferes with any of their rights to a clean environment.
  • HB 798: Would create a new government bureaucracy to enact costly air quality requirements for farms above and beyond existing environmental quality standards.
  • HB 496: Establishes the requirement of all employers of all sizes (including self-employed) to pay into a Family and Medical Leave Insurance Program.

“If we don’t use ag sources such as biomass and thermal energy as renewable energy sources, then all of that waste has to go somewhere not beneficial and is a nuisance,” said Senator Stephen Hershey, on HB 11. “It’s important to continue educating all of our colleagues on how various renewable energy is actually produced and utilized as opposed to negative assumptions based on not understanding.”

Bob Cissel, a Montgomery County farmer, addressed the deer damage and wildlife management bills. “Our deer damage problems in Maryland are like if you had a store and in the mornings you woke up and 9% of your inventory was gone,” he said.

# # #

MARYLAND FARM BUREAU®, INC. is a 501(c)(5) federation that services as the united voice of Maryland farm families. Our organizational strength comes from the active participation of over 10,000 individual and family members who belong to the state’s 23 local county Farm Bureau organizations. Since 1915, Maryland Farm Bureau has been committed to protecting and growing agriculture and preserving rural life. Maryland Farm Bureau® is a proud member of the American Farm Bureau Federation. Learn more at MDFarmBureau.com.  

Media Contact:
Amber Pearson | Maryland Farm Bureau, Inc. (TSN Communications)
573.268.6853 | amber@tsncommunications.com

3 questions to ask before lending farm & ag equipment to neighbors

3 questions to ask before lending farm & ag equipment to neighbors


The following information is provided by Nationwide®, the #1 farm and ranch insurer in the U.S.*

When her husband Mike passed away in 2020, Jolene Palmer was faced with the task of harvesting the Fairfax, Minnesota, farm family’s corn crop —but she wasn’t alone.

Neighboring farmers eagerly volunteered their time and equipment —58 people, 12 combines, 12 grain carts and 28 semis, to be exact —to help her get the crop in the bin.

“In a total of 15 hours, they harvested 1,100 acres. It really was a true effort,” Palmer said.“It went so smoothly. It was just a huge accomplishment and it really made everybody feel good.”Farmers are well known for helping each other in times of need. Lending equipment or a helping hand to neighbors often takes place without a second thought. But like anything in farming, it’s crucial to do proper planning –weighing any safety, liability and insurance considerations.

Before lending farm & ag equipment, consider this scenario

Say your neighbor rolls over your lent tractor, which is one of the most common accidents in farming. Could you be liable for injuries? Will damages to the tractor be covered under your insurance policy?

Change your production systems

Nationwide’s AVP of Risk Management, Jason Berkland, recommends farmers stop and ask themselves three important questions before lending equipment to assist neighbors, including: 

  1. Does my policy extend coverage for rented or lent equipment? Before donating equipment or machinery to help out, confirm any coverage for that equipment with your farm insurance agent.
  2. Is the piece of equipment in good working order? Make sure any machinery or equipment you are lending is well-maintained. That includes having all safety equipment like guards or locks installed and in working order. For additional information on mobile equipment safety, consider our mobile equipment safety training program.
  3. Does the person borrowing the equipment have the experience and ability to run the equipment safely? Confirm who will be operating the equipment and that they have the necessary experience. Also conduct a walk-around together to point out safety features, worn parts and areas to watch while using the equipment. 

Change your production systems

As the #1 farm insurer in the U.S.1, Nationwide has been helping farmers in need for nearly a century –so we get it. We just want to make sure that when farmers help other farmers, safeguards are in place to help protect those involved.

Contact your local Nationwide Farm Certified agent to learn more about the risks of lending farm equipment and to confirm you have the proper coverage. This way, you can be confident in helping your neighbors.

*A.M. Best Market Share Report 2020. Nationwide, the Nationwide N and Eagle, and Nationwide is on your side are service marks of Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company. © 2021 Nationwide

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