Crop insurance: A barrier to conservation adoption?

Midwest corn producers face inherent risks in their daily operations and incorporate risk-management strategies to reduce uncertainty; among these, crop insurance has dominated the agricultural landscape for decades. Previous research on conservation adoption has primarily examined the impact of individual-level characteristics on adoption, yet little is known about the impact of external factors, such as crop insurance. Using a mixed methods approach, we conducted semi-structured interviews and a multi-state survey to determine if crop insurance requirements limit cover crops and/or conservation tillage adoption for Midwest corn producers. Our findings indicate that crop insurance requirements are not a barrier to adoption. Rather, crop insurance and conservation practices serve unique not contradictory roles in Midwest producers' operations and are used simultaneously. Future research should continue to identify and seek solutions for external barriers to broadly increase adoption rates.