Latest Agribusiness Headlines

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

Farmers Insurance Introduces New Annual Auto Policy in Ohio

Dec 11 2007 // Farmers Insurance Group of Cos., including Farmers Insurance Company of Columbus recently announced a new product for its over 256,000 insurance policyholders or new policyholders in Ohio.Beginning December 17, 2007, the...

‘Most Secure Places to Live’ Are In Ore., Calif. and Wash.

Dec 11 2007 // Health, prosperity, safety and security are all desirable aspects when it comes to seeking a place to live, work or raise a family. According to the fourth annual Most Secure U.S. Places to Live rankings from Farmers...

S&P Details Actions Taken on ‘Public Information’ Ratings

Dec 10 2007 // Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services has announced various rating actions on insurance companies with public information (pi) ratings. S&P explained that “ratings with a ‘pi’ subscript are...

Endurance Closes ARMtech Acquisition

Dec 10 2007 // Bermuda-based Endurance Specialty Holdings Ltd. announced the closing of the acquisition by Endurance US Holdings Corp. of ARMtech Insurance Services, Inc. and its affiliates (See IJ web site –...

Consumer Group Challenges Farmers Insurance’s California Homeowners Rate Increase

Dec 7 2007 // A California consumer group is challenging Farmers Insurance Co.’s request for a rate increase of 6.9 percent.The Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights (FTCR), in a petition filed Monday with the state...

BMS Group Acquires Property/Casualty Team in Minn.

Dec 6 2007 // Global reinsurer BMS announced today that it has acquired a P/C brokerage team based in Minneapolis. The nine member team is led by senior brokers Jim Brost and Mike Joyce.“The acquisition of this team boosts our...

Best Affirms and Withdraws Farmers Mutual Ratings

Dec 5 2007 // A.M. Best Co. has affirmed the financial strength rating of ‘B’ (Fair) and the issuer credit rating of “bb” of Farmers Mutual Insurance Company (PA) of Elizabethtown, Penna. with a negative...

Study: Safety Belt Use Still Important

Nov 19 2007 // Using the 2006 fatal crash data released by the U.S. Department of Transportation, Los Angeles-based Farmers Insurance has completed a study to determine the most influential factors in drivers’ mortality rate in...

Zurich 9 Month Net Jumps 25% to $4.157 Billion; Farmers up 6%

Nov 15 2007 // Zurich Financial Services Group is having a good year with nine month net profits increasing by 25 percent to $4.157 billion, compared to $3.326 billion for the same period in 2006.Other earnings highlights included the...

Ga. Tree Farmers Worry about Drought, Bugs in Aftermath of Wildfires

Nov 13 2007 // The wildfires that burned almost a half-million acres in south Georgia were snuffed out months ago, but tree farmers now face prolonged drought and insect infestations as they prepare to replant the vast...

Okla.’s Anti-Illegal Immigration Law Affecting Agriculture Sector

Nov 6 2007 // Oklahoma’s new anti-illegal immigration law has some farmers and agricultural businesses scrambling for laborers as Hispanic workers fearful of being deported stay away from work.House Bill 1804, which went into...

Cargill Recalls 1 Million Pounds of Beef Possibly Tainted by E coli

Nov 5 2007 // Wayzata, Minn.-based Cargill Inc. says it is recalling more than 1 million pounds of ground beef that may be contaminated with E. coli bacteria, the second time in less than a month it has voluntarily recalled beef that...

Nevada Seeks Federal Disaster Declaration

Nov 4 2007 // In a move to help ranchers and farmers get low-interest loans and other assistance, Gov. Jim Gibbons has asked for a federal disaster declaration because of drought conditions and a bad fire season in Nevada.“The...

Gov. Wants More Help for N.C. Farmers Suffering from Drought

Oct 31 2007 // North Carolina field crops are predicted to suffer great losses as a result of the state’s drought conditions.Soybean yields are projected to be at 20 bushels per acre, which will be the lowest yield since 1983....

Avocado Crops Hard Hit by Wildfires

Oct 30 2007 // Wind-driven wildfires that torched Southern California have charred fruit orchards, wilted flowers and littered the ground with avocados, delivering a devastating blow to area farmers already reeling from a deep winter...

Feds Considering Imposing Safety Rules for Leafy Greens

Oct 26 2007 // The U.S. Department of Agriculture is considering imposing a new set of national regulations to lower the risk of foodborne illness in salad greens.The USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service says its new proposal for...

After Crop Damage, Drought-parched North Carolina Sees Rain

Oct 25 2007 // A drought report released Tuesday says 17 North Carolina water systems serving hundreds of thousands of residents are near a crisis-level shortage. The lengthy drought has strained North Carolina’s water systems and...

Max Capital Names Dicker to Dublin Agriculture Post

Oct 22 2007 // Max Bermuda, the operating company of the Max Capital Group, announced an expansion of its Dublin unit with the appointment of Michael W. Dicker as Senior Vice President – Agriculture at Max Re Europe Limited, Max...

S.C. Clam Farmers Settle for $1.8 Million Following Oil Spill

Oct 22 2007 // More than a dozen South Carolina clam farmers who claimed most of their crop was spoiled by an oil spill five years ago have settled a lawsuit with a shipping line and a dredging firm for nearly $1.8 million.Under the...

Colo. Farms Ordered to Surrender Records in Insurance Investigation

Oct 17 2007 // Three San Luis Valley, Colo., farms have been ordered to turn over records to a federal investigator looking into whether they illegally sold potatoes after collecting up to $1.3 million in federal insurance payments on...