Latest Agribusiness Headlines

All the headlines from our Agribusiness Topic Page, ordered by recency.

Neace Lukens Acquires Equine Insurance Agency in Kentucky

Jan 4 2011 // Lousiville, Kentucky-based Neace Lukens has acquired the Plamp-Keen Agency Inc., an insurance agency also in Louisville that specializes in horse-related coverages. The merger adds 10 employees from Plamp-Keen, including...

Everest Re Group Finalizes Acquisition of Heartland Crop Insurance

Jan 4 2011 // The Bermuda-based Everest Re Group has acquired the business and operations of Heartland Crop Insurance, Inc., a managing general agent, for $55 million plus the agreed upon value of the net assets of the agency, with an...

Inspectors Find 2 Tennessee Dams in Need of Repair

Dec 31 2010 // State inspectors have found two privately owned hazardous dams in Tennessee that are in need of immediate repair, including one that the property owner seems unwilling to fix.An investigation by The Jackson Sun in May...

President Obama Expected to Sign Food Safety Overhaul Bill

Dec 22 2010 // The ailing U.S. food safety system moved closer Tuesday toward its biggest overhaul in more than 70 years after the House passed legislation that would increase inspections and give regulators the power to recall tainted...

Farmers Group Names Dailey President, COO; CEO Woudstra Retiring in 2011

Dec 20 2010 // Farmers Group Inc., the Los Angeles-based company and unit of Zurich Financial Services Group, has appointed Jeff Dailey president and chief operating officer, effective Jan. 1, 2011. Dailey also will become Farmers’...

Everest Re in Negotiations to Acquire Heartland Crop Insurance

Dec 17 2010 // The Bermuda-based Everest Re Group announced that it has entered into discussions with Heartland Crop Insurance, Inc. regarding a potential acquisition of the Kansas-based company by Everest Reinsurance Holdings, Inc. or...

Florida Growers Reporting Ice Damage to Orange Crop

Dec 15 2010 // Citrus growers in central Florida reported ice damage to their orange fruit and groves Wednesday after overnight temperatures dropped to bone-chilling lows in some areas of the citrus belt.“There was definitely some...

Swiss Re’s New sigma Study Highlights ‘Relevance of Microinsurance’

Dec 15 2010 // Swiss Re’s latest sigma study – “Microinsurance – risk protection for 4 billion people” – emphasizes the relevance of microinsurance as an effective and viable risk management solution...

WTO’s Lamy Tells Negotiators to Push for Doha Deal

Dec 15 2010 // Members of the World Trade Organization are showing new energy and determination to reach a global trade deal but must now abandon fixed positions to clinch the agreement, the head of the WTO said on Tuesday.WTO...

Droughts, Floods, Snow and Cold Hit Global Commodities

Dec 15 2010 // Droughts and deluges in Australia, snow in Europe and cold snaps in the United States are pushing up prices of a range of commodities from sugar to heating oil and soybeans.Australia typically ranks as second in the league...

Aon Benfield Cat Report for November Highlights Cold and Floods

Dec 6 2010 // In its latest monthly assessment of the world’s catastrophes for November Aon Benfield highlights the first winter weather event of the season across Europe with “notable affects.”the report, published by...

Farmers Insurance Files for Homeowners Rate Hike in Texas

Dec 5 2010 // Farmers Insurance has filed for a 3.9 percent rate increase for homeowners insurance coverage in Texas. The Dallas Morning News reports that Farmers’ filing with the Texas Department of Insurance will affect about...

Employers With Foreign Labor Face Increased Liability

Dec 5 2010 // Every state has been impacted by Arizona’s immigration law, as there is now a cry for immigration reform. Employers who hire a questionable workforce due to the “dirty” or menial nature of certain jobs...

Crop Bounty Spurs Construction Boom at Midwest Grain Elevators

Dec 3 2010 // A construction boom has been under way at grain elevators across the Great Plains, where farmers have grown more corn and opted to keep more of the grain to meet the demand from ethanol plants.Storage capacity at the...

Farmers Insurance Files for Homeowners Rate Hike in Texas

Nov 29 2010 // Farmers Insurance has filed for a 3.9 percent rate increase for homeowners policies in Texas.The Dallas Morning News reports that Farmers’ filing with the Texas Department of Insurance will affect about half the...

Melting Siberian Permafrost Raises Tricky Climate Issue

Nov 23 2010 // The Russian scientist shuffles across the frozen lake, scuffing aside ankle-deep snow until he finds a cluster of bubbles trapped under the ice. With a cigarette lighter in one hand and a knife in the other, he lances the...

Deaths, Injuries Among Midwest Grain Workers Hit Record

Nov 18 2010 // Accidents in grain silos, storage bins and other facilities killed and injured a record number of workers through October this year, a study by Purdue University showed.The October study showed 46 deaths and injuries so...

Amerisafe to Acquire Book of Business from Cooperative Mutual

Nov 17 2010 // DeRidder, La.-based Amerisafe Inc., a specialty writer of hazardous workers’ compensation insurance, announced it plans to acquire the workers’ compensation business of Cooperative Mutual Insurance Co.Effective...

Key Facts and Provisions of U.S.-South Korea Trade Deal

Nov 11 2010 // The United States and South Korea are working to resolve beef and auto trade issues blocking U.S. congressional approval of a free trade agreement while President Barack Obama is in Seoul for the Group of 20 summit.An...

Oregon State to Assist Crop Insurance Program

Nov 8 2010 // An innovative climate and weather monitoring system developed at Oregon State University in Corvallis will soon be used to help underwrite and verify claims of crop losses, both to improve services to farmers across the...