MCO, Margin Coverage Option, is a new crop insurance product for 2026. I like to think of MCO as a hybrid between ECO and Margin Protection. MCO works similar to ECO and also provides a few attractive characteristics of Margin Protection.

Similar to ECO, MCO is a banded county-based revenue coverage from 86% to 95%.  MCO is an endorsement that can be purchased with Revenue Protection. These products will trigger independently. Revenue Protection triggers off individual yields, whereas MCO will trigger off county yields.

MCO also takes input costs into consideration to provide protection against increasing input costs and lower overall profit margins.

(Price x Yield = Revenue) – Input Costs = Operating Margin

See 2026 Expected County Yields used in determining MCO coverage.

MCO’s projected price is determined in the fall, August 15 – September 14, just like Margin Protection. The fall timing of the product provides extended price protection over other crop insurance products that use a February projected price.

Sales closing for the 2026 crop year is September 30, 2025. Reach out to learn more about how MCO can be incorporated into your risk management plan.