A first-of-its kind insurance coverage for farmers is now available through a small company in Safford.

This product recall insurance covers growers and anyone else affected by food recalls, according to Tom Elms, owner and president of The Thomas Group Insurance LLC.

Recent examples of food contamination that has affected growers and other workers in the industry include salmonella-tainted tomatoes (Arizona is one of the states currently affected) and a spinach recall in California last year. Corn, cantaloupe and sprouts have also been recalled in 2008.

Tom Elms, owner and CEO of The Thomas Group Insurance, is excited to bring a first-in-the-industry type of coverage to farmers. Photo by Brian Wright

People who work in the crop industry can be significantly affected by food contamination, even if the contaminated food wasn’t grown or shipped to their town or state.

“I was shocked when I found out there was no coverage for growers,” Elms said.

Western Growers Associa-tion, a giant in the agricultural industry, expressed its concerns to Elms about the lack of product recall coverage.

After Elms found out no other insurance company was willing to take the plunge on this kind of coverage, TTGI partnered with Performance Insurance and Lloyd’s of London to provide it.

The premium for this type of coverage is: For every $1 million in receipts from the projected sale of produce a grower would pay $2,500 annually. TTGI states this insurance will be easy to purchase and should be available to buy online via its Web site, www.thetho-masgroupinsurance.com, in about two weeks.

A produce recall negatively affects growers and workers in several ways. First, determining the source of contamination is a time-consuming process. Second-ly, many growers risk having their products pulled from the shelf or having their entire fields turned under. All of this results in lost profits, product rebranding costs and other recall expenses.

Elms said 30,000 employees in the tomato industry were affected in Florida alone during the tomato recall. These people had no way of recouping losses during periods of recalls or work stoppages.

Wednesday, the Associat-ed Press reported that more than 1,000 people have been stricken ill by the salmonella linked to raw tomatoes. The report claimed it is the worst foodborne outbreak in at least a decade.

TTGI states this program is the “first in the nation to offer this coverage; first in the industry and first to protect growers from: pre-recall expenses, third-party recall expenses, malicious acts, loss of gross profits and the increased costs of doing business.”

Elms thinks it’s incredible something this groundbreaking has roots in tiny Safford.

TTGI is the No. 1 seller of health insurance for Western Growers and appreciates what farmers do for the country.

“I’m glad farmers now have some type of coverage,” Elms said.