Economic uncertainty obviously remains a leading cause of farmer suicides, driven in part by market forces resulting in rising operating costs accompanying dropping income. The USDA had predicted that 2023 farm income levels would drop by 22 percent, while expenses continued to rise. Due thus to various economic reasons, price volatility of crop inputs have posed existential crises for farm bottom lines and subsequently to operators’ mental health. The suicide rate for farmers, ranchers, and ag managers was 43.7 deaths per 100K population, a rate significantly higher than that of the overall population’s average of 14.1 per 100K.
For years, farmers have also resorted to securing off-farm income to make ends meet, often raising stress levels.
Evolving FinTech and InsurTech innovation can help alleviate said financial stressors by prudently supplementing farmer incomes against commodity price volatility while providing checks against moral hazard and adverse selection risks for insurers, be they governmental agencies or private carriers.
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