Special insurance protects kiwi fruit production in Xiuwen

Xiuwen county in Southwest China's Guizhou province has, since the beginning of this winter, carried out policy promotions in villages and towns for insurance on kiwi fruit, the county's featured fruit, to be included in national policy-oriented agricultural insurance. 

Kiwi fruit is one of the featured industries of Xiuwen and plays a key role in increasing farmers' incomes and promoting rural revitalization. Planted in remote areas with out-of-date infrastructure, however, the fruit is weak in resisting natural disasters and this often damages farmers' incomes. 

"Kiwi fruit farmers in Xiuwen attach great importance to insurance, because it relieves our worries," said Chao Wenyong, a grower in Liutun town, whose harvest was badly hit by an April hail storm. 

Chao's plantation covers more than 200 mu (13.33 hectares), meant to generate a large sum of money. Due to his buying of insurance, the grower won a claim for more than 600,000 yuan ($85,730) from an insurance company for the damage caused by the hail and was able to continue his business. 

The insurance is targeted to provide claims for damages caused by natural disasters, such as plant diseases and insect pests, hail, storms, heavy winds and prolonged drought. The total insured sum for kiwi fruit is 3,000 yuan per mu, of which 1,000 yuan is for trees and 2,000 yuan for the fruit. 

The premiums are 150 yuan for each mu of kiwi fruit. The insured sum for the saplings is 1,000 yuan for each mu.