RMA Adds Stocking Rate Requirements to PRF

This year, the RMA has made several adjustments to the PRF program, including a new stocking rate requirement for acres insured as grazing acres and a limitation on the January-February interval. In this article, we will dive into the details of those new requirements, and how it might affect your operation.

Beginning with the 2027 crop year,  producers insuring PRF acres as grazing land must have an insurable interest in enough livestock to meet at least 25% of the average stocking rate for their insured acres. While the program always required producers to have an insurable interest in livestock when enrolling grazing acres, the RMA’s new requirement creates a qualifier to help verify that insurable interest.

The Rainfall Index Insurance Standards Handbook also states that If requested, records must be provided to determine whether the acreage is owned, cash leased, or share leased and the producer has livestock records to support their insurable interest, with those records showing at least 25% of the stocking rate. These records must be maintained for 3 years after the crop year.

RMA guidance identifies several examples of acceptable livestock records. This list is not exhaustive, and any one of the listed examples may be acceptable. More information available in ProAg’s RY2027 Rainfall Index (RI) Changes.

While the stocking rate requirement should not be hard for most producers to meet, calculating out the required number of animals is a bit more difficult. To establish the stocking rate, it is expressed in acres per animal unit (AU) and may vary based on location, and type of grazing acreage. This information can be found annually in the National Crop Table, provided with the rate/AUM information on a state or federal lease, or if neither of those options is available, another Federal agency’s documentation may be used. Silveus agents can also help you calculate and determine this number while reviewing your policy. Once you have determined the applicable stocking rate for your grazing acres, you can calculate the total animal units (AU) the acreage is estimated to support. Multiplying that number by 25% determines the minimum number of AUs required to meet the PRF stocking requirement.

In addition to the National Crop Table, producers will also need to analyze the Rainfall Index Insurance Standards Handbook’s to determine the animal unit equivalents for different types of livestock.  Using this chart, if the 25% stocking minimum was 20 animal units (AU), this would equal 20 adult beef cows, 80 goats, roughly 56 llamas, etc.

Lets assume a producer has 500 acres of non-irrigated Common Bermuda Grass in Crosby Texas he would like to get PRF grazing acre coverage on. This producer also grazes beef cattle under 500lbs.

Acres: 500 acres
Grass: Non-irrigated Common Bermuda Grass
Location: Crosby Texas
Animal type: Beef cattle under 500lbs

Looking in the National Crop Table (2026) we see the Acres per animal unit.
9 acres per AU

To find our stocking rate limit we divide total acres by acres per animal unit.
500/9 = 55.5 Animal Units

To determine the 25% minimum stocking requirement:
55.5 x .25 = 13.88 AU

So, to meet the minimum stocking requirements, we need 13.88 animal units. Next, we check the animal unit chart. Beef cattle under 500lbs count as .5 of an animal unit.
13.88 / .5 = 27.75 beef cows under 500lbs. 

You cannot graze three quarters of a cow, so the number is rounded up. This field would require the producer to provide stocking records for at least 28 beef cows under 500lbs grazing this ground.

Beginning with the 2027 crop year the RMA has limited the January – February interval to a maximum of 25% of your coverage allocation per grid. Historically, producers were required to spread their coverage across at least two intervals, and you could not allocate anything less than 10% to a selected interval. In addition, the maximum coverage amount allowed for a single interval was usually 60%, though it could be different according to the special provisions. With this change, you may need to adjust your coverage if you previously allocated more than 25% to the January-February interval.