The pandemic provided opportunity for specialty producers in Iowa to expand production and sales. However, managing risk for specialty production is critical to capitalizing on new market opportunities.
The Small Farms division of Farm, Food and Enterprise Development of Iowa Sate University Extension sponsored a series of webinars for specialty crop producers in January, February and March 2021. They featured new tools and resources on how to manage risk.
The 10 webinars covered various risk management topics, each featuring different speakers. Topics included Why is Risk Management Important, Types of insurance Policies and Options for Specialty Crops, Whole Farm Revenue Protection, Developing a Diversified Market & Profitable Crops, and Weather Patterns and Management Tools.
Please visit the Small Farms Youtube Page to view each of the webinars. These webinars are accessible free of cost.
Below is a list of topics covered and speakers for each webinar.
| Topic | Speaker |
| Why is Risk Management Important? & Overview of Risk Management Strategies | Rex Nelson–Associate Extension Educator, University of Nebraska Lincoln Extension |
| Crop Insurance Resources and Tools & Types of insurance Policies and Options for Specialty Crops | Amanda Weigel–Agriculture Program Specialist, Iowa Farm Service Agency |
| Whole Farm Revenue Protection | Craig Christianson–Risk Management Specialist, USDA Risk Management Agency |
| Risk Management for Perennial Crops | Joe Hannan–Commercial Horticulture Specialist, Iowa State University Extension and Outreach |
| Developing a Diversified Market & Profitable Crops | Ajay Nair–Extension Vegetable Specialist, Iowa State University Extension and Outreach |
| Food Safety on the Farm | Dan Fillius–Food Safety Educator, Iowa State University Extension and Outreach |
| Ag Decision Maker Resources and How to Access Them | Ann Johanns–Economics Extension Program Specialist, Iowa State University Extension and Outreach |
| Weather Patterns and Management Tools | Justin Glisan–State Climatologist of Iowa, Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship & Joe Hannan – Commercial Horticulture Specialist, Iowa State University Extension and Outreach |
| Farm Finances | Craig Chase–Farm, Food and Enterprise Development Program Manager, Iowa State University Extension and Outreach |
| Risk Management for Organic Production | Kathleen Delate–Extension Organic Specialist, Iowa State University Extension and Outreach |
Need more information? Contact Olivia Hanlon at ohanlon@iastate.edu. This material is based upon work supported by USDA-NIFA under Award Number 2018-70027-28586.
– Small Farms division of Farm, Food and Enterprise Development of Iowa Sate University Extension
