According to the National Union of Agricultural Insurers, some regions in Russia already insure from a quarter to half of their crops.
In particular, this is Stavropol Territory , where 652 thousand hectares are insured: three times more than a year ago.
Followed by:
Voronezh Region — 612 thousand hectares are insured.
Omsk — 550 thousand.
Tambov — 409 thousand.
Altai — 366 thousand.
Volgograd region — 308 thousand.
Orenburg — 284 thousand.
Mordovia — 228 thousand.
Tatarstan — 205 thousand.
Primorsky Territory — 188 thousand hectares.
At the same time, Primorsky Krai, being the last in the top 10 in terms of area, became the first in percentage terms: the farmers of this region insured almost half of all crops (46%).
And there is something to insure against: according to statistics, this year at least 20% of winter crops may simply not grow, since they had to be sown in practically dry land. If insurance compensates for at least some of these losses, it will be of great help for farmers.
What are the prospects for Russian agricultural insurance
The prospects are enormous, because at the moment there are not many insured crops in absolute terms. As noted by the Deputy Minister of Agriculture of the Russian Federation Elena Fastova, a total of 4.2 million hectares of crops were insured across the country at the end of November. The figure looks large, but it is only 5.5% of the total area. However, in 2019 it was even less: only 4.5%.
Taking into account winter crops insurance, today (that is, for the beginning of the 2021 season) in Russia as a whole, no more than 7-8% of crops are insured. At the same time, the head of the National Union of Agricultural Insurers, Korney Bizhdov, noted that to ensure the financial stability of the Russian agro-industrial complex, the figure should be an order of magnitude higher: at least 30-40%. So the scope for development is endless.
According to Elena Fasova, the country is developing a flexible multi-risk insurance system. For example, it is planned to add emergency insurance this year. Compensation can be obtained if the regional authorities declare an emergency regime, and the agrarians suffer from the disaster.
However, in addition to this, each farm can independently choose what and from what to insure it. For example, it can be crops (from the fact that they will not sprout), as well as perennial plants. All this can be insured against death as a result of frost, drought, pests.
It is planned that the state will support farmers and even subsidize up to 80% of insurance payments. But in order to receive at least one ruble, including from the state, it is still necessary to pre-insure.
