FARGO, N.D. — August 3, 2026 — The Agricultural Risk Policy Center at North Dakota State University has released a new report examining how U.S. producers have configured their Federal Crop Insurance Program policies over the past two decades.

The report, The Anatomy of Crop Insurance Policies and What U.S. Producers Chose, 2025, by Francis Tsiboe, documents how producers selected insurance plans, coverage levels, unit structures, policy options, and supplemental coverage from 2006 through 2025.

Drawing on USDA Risk Management Agency data, the report finds that producers have increasingly shifted toward Enterprise Units because they offer higher premium subsidies and lower producer-paid costs. It also shows that revenue-based insurance plans account for most insured liability, while index-based plans for pasture, forages, and rangeland insure more acres at lower values per acre.

The analysis also documents a continued move toward higher coverage levels, the growing use of supplemental insurance products, and a decline in written agreements as more crops and production practices become eligible under standard insurance offerings.

“A crop insurance policy isn't one product, it's a stack of half a dozen separate decisions, and producers have quietly shifted nearly every one of them," said Francis Tsiboe, author of the report. "For Extension professionals and policymakers, the report shows where producers sit before the 2026 and 2027 subsidy changes move them again. For researchers and graduate students new to the program, it's a map of how a policy is built, and the baseline those responses will be measured against.”

The report also discusses how recent policy changes scheduled for the 2026 and 2027 crop years may influence producer participation and insurance decisions while informing the guidance provided by Extension professionals.

The report serves as a resource for producers, Extension professionals, policymakers, researchers, and others seeking to better understand the Federal Crop Insurance Program and the factors that shape producer insurance decisions.

The full report is available at: https://bit.ly/4buUrEu

Media Contact:
Agricultural Risk Policy Center (ARPC)
North Dakota State University
arpc@ndsu.edu
www.ndsu.edu/agriculture/arpc