With 30,000 yuan (US$3,704) of indemnity in hand, for the first time, Huang Bo felt his crop income was not overly dependent on extreme climate change.

Huang, a farmer at Tieli Farm in northeast China's Heilongjiang Province, recently had his 40-hectare soybean field badly damaged by frost.

Luckily, his agriculture mutual insurance, carrying a 4,000-yuan (US$494) premium, brought him 30,000 yuan (US$3704) in compensation.

He is among the first farmers in the province to turn to mutual insurance as an amulet for their crops in case of precipitating natural disasters.

Huang's case augurs a promising future in the agricultural insurance launched by Heilongjiang Sunlight Agriculture Mutual Insurance Company (HSAMIC).

"Shoulder the risks together and help each other when necessary. This is our principle," said Liang Min, president of the company, adding that it has paved the way for the development of China's agricultural insurance.

Statistics provided by the company show that as of January 11, about 200,000 farm households in the province have signed contracts. The area under insurance has reached 147 hectares, 80 percent of the total farmland.

Among the 200-million-yuan (US$25 million) insurance premium, 65 percent comes from farmers and the rest is offered by the company and the local government, according to company sources.

The company's major insurance items include planting, poultry rearing and farming machines.

"Agriculture mutual insurance has shifted the government's temporary relief into an economic contract for compensation in case of natural calamities. It helps to alleviate the government's burden and arouse farmers' awareness of detracting venture," said Liang.

Still, as a fledging agriculture insurance business, it still faces such problems as insufficient funds and lack of supporting laws and regulations, he added.

(Xinhua News Agency November 23, 2005)