INTEREST IN PASTURE COVER GROWS

Federal agriculture officials are looking at the possibility of a national insurance program to permit ranchers to insure both pasture and rangeland against losses resulting from drought and other disasters, according to the Associated Press. Currently, a pilot program in Montana offers such insurance in a dozen counties, with growing interest emerging to expand the program on a broader scale. More than 500 producers are taking part in the pilot program, allowing ranchers to buy insurance that pays if land set aside for grazing livestock is ruined by drought, fire, hail or insects.