WINNIPEG, Manitoba--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Farmers Edge Inc. (“Farmers Edge” or the “Company”) (TSX: FDGE) today announced enhancements to Canola Heat Blast Yield Protection, an innovative insurance product distributed through its wholly owned subsidiary, DigiAg Risk Management Inc. (“DigiAg”). Expanding on the 2021 release, the unique parametric coverage will now be available to farmers as a standard property and casualty solution with less paperwork and no legal entity or minimum asset requirements.
The Company has also increased its capacity to cover more acres and provide coverage opportunities to reach more farmers across Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Alberta.
In Canada, canola is one of the most widely grown crops and accounts for nearly ¼ of all farm receipts, representing a significant source of income for farm businesses. However, the notorious high-value crop has progressed into a high-risk investment, elevating the significance of revenue protection for long-term resilience. This season — alongside inflated input costs, rising temperatures, and an ambitious industry goal to boost yields by 2025 — farmers also face delayed planting, thereby increasing the risk of lost yield due to heat exposure during canola’s flowering period. Canola Heat Blast Yield Protection automatically monitors hyper-local weather conditions to provide transparent and affordable coverage for farmers to protect their investment against the economic effects of yield loss due to excess heat.
“In 2020, we helped canola growers across the Prairies increase yields by 18%1, but we understand ROI is determined by far more than what’s in the bin,” stated Wade Barnes, Founder and CEO of Farmers Edge. “That’s why, at Farmers Edge, we bring sustainability, productivity, and profitability together. We recognize that our customers are doing what they can to grow more with less and ensure long-term economic viability; but the fact is, they can’t control the weather. Last year, the Canadian Prairies experienced some of the hottest temperatures on record, and over 90% of the canola acres on our platform impacted by heat blast would have qualified for a payout. With these enhancements to insurance, we can provide more farmers with access to sufficient, affordable coverage to secure revenue and shield their profit margin from the costly impact of high temperatures.”
Saskatchewan farmer Darin Strudwick, of DCD Strudwick Farms, bought Canola Heat Blast Yield Protection as a tool to ensure his farm meets its bottom line and stated he would “recommend it to other farmers.” Strudwick explained how he planted his canola with the intent to reach a target of 50 bushels/acre, but the effects of heat blast in his area dropped his yield to 25 bushels/acre at harvest.
“Heat blast is most often associated with being catastrophic to a single season, but it also causes shallow losses year after year, adding a financial hit on the farm,” says Darren Peters, VP of Global Insurance. “At DigiAg, our focus is to provide superior insurance products and unparalleled customer experience. We've worked closely alongside farmers to deliver a robust heat blast solution where they can lean on technology to meet the evolving needs of the farm — a product that is highly accurate, cost-considerate, requires minimal manual effort, and also provides complete claim transparency and fast payouts.”
To request a quote or learn more about Canola Heat Blast Yield Protection Insurance, click here.
About Farmers Edge
Farmers Edge is a global leader in digital agriculture, revolutionizing the industry with a broad portfolio of proprietary technological innovations, spanning hardware, software, and services. Powered by a unique combination of connected field sensors, artificial intelligence, big data analytics, and agronomic expertise, the Company's digital platform turns data into actions and intelligent insights, delivering value to all stakeholders of the agricultural ecosystem. Farmers Edge disruptive technologies accelerate digital adoption on the farm and beyond, protecting our global resources and ensuring sustainable food production for a rapidly growing population. For more information, please visit www.farmersedge.ca and SEDAR (www.sedar.com).
Forward-Looking Information
Certain statements in this press release constitute forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities legislation and reflect the Company's current expectations regarding future events. Forward-looking information is based on a number of key expectations and assumptions made by Farmers Edge. Forward-looking information is subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the Company's control, that could cause actual results and events to differ materially from those that are disclosed in or implied by such forward-looking information. Those risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, the factors discussed under "Forward-Looking Information" and "Risk Factors" in the Company's most recent Annual Information Form, and under the "Risk and Uncertainties" section in the Company's management discussion and analysis filed March 25, 2022, each of which are available on the Company's website (www.farmersedge.ca/investor-relations/) and on SEDAR (www.sedar.com). The Company does not undertake any obligation to update such forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as expressly required by applicable law.
1. Our solutions yielded an average of 18% more bushels per acre than the average yields of canola farms across the Canadian Prairies in 2020, as reported by Statistics Canada.
