Ensure your insurance coverage is reflective of the risks you face in your cattle operation by choosing the appropriate program. The calf program is designed for the cow-calf producer selling calves in the fall. The feeder program reflects the risk a producer backgrounding cattle faces. The fed program reflects the risks a feedlot, finishing cattle, would face.
| Cattle price insurance options | Calf | Feeder | Fed |
| Class of Cattle | Unweaned Calves under one year of age. | Weaned, or nearly weaned cattle being backgrounded and/or intended for grass | Finished cattle expected to grade A or better. |
| Forward Price Coverage | Based on a feeder price forecast with an adjustment for the price of barley and the price difference between feeder cattle (850 pounds) and calves. | Based on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange’s Feeder Cattle Futures, currency and cash to futures basis. | Based on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange’s Live Cattle Futures, currency and cash to futures basis. |
| Settlement | Based on the average price of a 600 pound steer. | Based on the average price of an 850 pound steer. | Based on a finished animal at the Canfax fed cattle price. |
| Availability | Purchase in the spring (Feb-May) for fall settlement. | Year-round | Year-round |
| Policy Lengths | 16-36 weeks | 12-36 weeks | 12-36 weeks |
With a minimum weight of only one hundred pounds (cwt) to participate, a producer can choose to insure any portion of their cattle inventory. By choosing from a range of policy lengths, a producer can match insurance to actual cattle marketings. Offering a range of coverage levels for each policy length, a producer can decide to take on varying levels of risk. With no obligation to sell the insured cattle to claim and the last four weeks of the policy to submit a claim in, the program remains flexible.