Currently, budgets for corn and soybean production by Illinois Farmers is projected to be below breakeven on profitability.  University of Illinois Farmdoc budgets can be found here.

Federal Crop Insurance can be used as an effective tool to protect farm operations from yield and/or price loss. 

85% Coverage Recommended for 2025

Farmers often select Revenue Coverage (FCS) @ 75% to 80% coverage due to premium savings on the Federal Crop Insurance. In 2025, farmers should highly consider using 85% coverage to protect against loss. In addition, subsidies have been greatly increased on the Enhanced Coverage Option (ECO) for Federal Crop Insurance which boosts loss coverage from 85% to 95% if selected. 

Individual policies cover individual farmer’s crop revenue from yield and price losses.  However, ECO uses the county yield average to compute losses above the 85% guarantee from standard coverage to 95%. ECO payments will not be based on your farm, but the performance of the county average yield. This is not perfect coverage for your farm but provides additional coverage at a highly subsidized rate.    

Income Protection

During challenging times, it is human nature to cut costs. An increased cost for income protection by purchasing higher levels of insurance may be very well worth the reduced risk of lower profits from further price erosion or reduced yield due to weather. 

Given the current political climate and international relation challenges, the Enhanced Coverage Option should be highly considered. The road you choose for protection may have a significant positive impact.