HOUMA — The federal government is launching an insurance program to help oyster farmers cover losses from natural disasters.
The U.S. Agriculture Department’s Federal Crop Insurance Corporation
approved the pilot program, which offers group insurance coverage to
Louisiana oyster growers. It will offer the insurance to farmers at a
reduced premium, hopefully eliminating the need to seek federal aid
when crops are wiped out by catastrophic events like hurricanes, said
Mike Voisin, vice president of Motivatit Seafood in Houma and a member
of the state’s Oyster Task Force.
The insurance program comes
after hurricanes Gustav and Ike wiped out as much as 25 to 30 percent
of state oyster farmers’ crops, Voisin said. State fisherman are
receiving $40 million in federal storm-recovery aid as a result.
“This
has been needed for a long time, and it’s come to the forefront as a
result of concerns that have been raised due to crop losses during the
hurricanes,” Voisin said.
“The farmer will pay into it, similar
to any other types of insurance. It is subsidized by the federal
government because it’s federal crop insurance, so there’s a federal
subsidy that helps pay some of that premium for the oyster farmer,”
Voisin said. “It’s a huge victory for the oyster community here in
Louisiana.”
The program, similar to those that currently insure
agricultural crops, marks the first time that Louisiana oyster farmers
can get coverage.
“Many people don’t think of oysters as a farmed
product, but they are harvested much like other crops, they just happen
to be under water,” said Al Sunseri, Louisiana Oyster Task Force
chairman.
Oyster-industry officials have been pushing for the
first-of-its-kind insurance program for four years, since before
hurricanes Katrina and Rita, Voisin added. Proponents say the program
will make it easier for farmers to get loans and financial backing.
Under the pilot program, oyster producers can purchase a guarantee that
the oyster harvest from a basin will be at least 90 percent of the
expected harvest.
Specific details, including where and how to secure coverage, haven’t been released yet.
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