The Margin Coverage Option (MCO) is a new area-based crop insurance endorsement. In Illinois, corn and soybeans are eligible for MCO coverage. The sales closing date for MCO coverage for the 2026 crop year is September 30th 2025 and is approaching quickly. This article provides some perspective on MCO by comparing it to the Enhanced Coverage Option (ECO).| farmdoc daily
For the 2026 crop year, a new crop insurance endorsement called Margin Coverage Option (MCO) is available. MCO is an area-based product protecting against operating margin declines driven by falling output prices, rising input costs, or both. In Illinois, corn and soybeans are eligible crops to purchase MCO. The sales closing date for MCO coverage for the 2026 crop year is Sept. 30 2025. This article provides an overview of this new policy and discusses considerations in assessing its purchase.| farmdoc daily
Dale Lattz, Gary Schnitkey, Nick Paulson, and Carl Zulauf - Machinery cost estimates for 2025 have been released and are available in the Management section on the farmdoc website. Machinery costs are updated every two years, with the last update occurring in 2023. As is usual, estimated machinery costs have increased, with most increases in the 1% to 14% range. The increases from 2023 to 2025 are less than the increases estimated between 2021 and 2023, when many costs increased by as much as...| farmdoc daily