Trends in agricultural insurance: Past, present and future

The article proves that due to the complexity of agricultural business, risks in agriculture are as important to the society as to the individual farmers. An unexpected drought can have catastrophic effects on the farms' output which in turn will reduce the overall welfare of the society. Besides the occurrence of potential risks, the management of these risks is also a concern for the society. In this paper we discuss the common risk management techniques with special emphasis on insurance mechanisms. Past and current examples of agricultural insurance schemes are analyzed. The paper also offers a detailed analysis of trends and possible variations of existing insurance coverage systems in Europe.