Oakview Insurance Services is an independent agency writing farm and agribusiness insurance for Gridley, CA (zip code 95948) and the surrounding Butte County farm country. Gridley growers run a little of everything: rice and the dryers that handle it, walnut and almond orchards with their own hullers, prune dehydrators, and the kiwifruit and specialty crops this town is known for. Mariah Davis founded Oakview in her hometown of Yuba City in 2010, about 20 miles south of Gridley on Highway 99. Our team of 20 dedicated insurance professionals has access to more than 100 A-rated carriers, including our core panel of 30+ direct-appointed carriers plus surplus lines and specialty markets. We have AFIS-certified and Nationwide Farm Certified agents on staff, Oakview is a member of the Butte County Farm Bureau, and we have earned 850+ five-star Google reviews. Request a quote to get started, or call us at (530) 674-5054.
Why Gridley Growers Choose Oakview
Here is what Gridley farm families and ag businesses get from working with us:
- AFIS-certified and Nationwide Farm Certified agents who work on farm accounts every day
- Experience with the processing side of Gridley farming: rice dryers, prune dehydrators, and nut hullers
- A member of the Butte County Farm Bureau
- 850+ five-star Google reviews, and voted Best Agent, Best Agency, and Best Customer Service by Appeal-Democrat readers multiple times
- Bilingual service in English and Spanish for owners, managers, and crews. Hablamos español.
- A dedicated advisor who knows your operation, not a call center. Meet our team.
Gridley and Butte County Agriculture
Gridley has long been tied to kiwifruit and has been called the Kiwi Capital of the U.S.A. Its sister-city relationship with Te Puke, New Zealand, the town that bills itself as the kiwifruit capital of the world, dates to 1982. Gridley growers have long been willing to plant what other parts of the valley pass on, from kiwifruit and chestnuts to sugar plums, and they grow those specialty crops right alongside the rice, walnuts, almonds, and prunes that carry the county’s numbers.
Rice has been part of this ground since commercial production began in Butte County in 1912. The flooded fields that follow harvest each winter also give migrating waterfowl a place to land next to the Gray Lodge Wildlife Area west of town, and many Gridley rice operations have been run by the same families for three generations or more.
Butte County’s 2025 Crop and Livestock Report put the county’s gross agricultural value at $702.7 million, up $113.7 million from 2024. Walnuts led at $178 million. Rice came second at $164 million, helped by roughly 27,000 more planted acres than the year before. Almonds rose to $144.7 million, and prunes held steady at $34.7 million as the county’s fourth most valuable crop.
Gridley is also a processing town. Sunsweet Growers runs a prune dryer on Evans-Reimer Road, and SunWest Milling’s rice mill sits just up Highway 99 in Biggs. Rice dryers, walnut and almond hullers, and packing sheds are spread across the area. For insurance, all of this adds up to a risk picture that mixes field operations with processing buildings, stored crops, seasonal crews, and equipment on county roads, and it takes an advisor who looks at the whole operation, not one piece at a time.
Crops and Operations We Insure in the Gridley Area
We work with Gridley-area growers and ag businesses across these crops and operations:
- Rice, including field operations, drying, and storage
- Walnuts and almonds, including hulling
- Prunes and prune dehydrators, including Sunsweet grower-members
- Kiwifruit, chestnuts, sugar plums, peaches, and other specialty orchard crops
- Cattle, hay, and grain
- Custom harvesters and grower-packer-shippers with direct sales
For crop-specific detail, see our rice farm insurance, walnut farm insurance, and almond farm insurance pages.
Farm Insurance Coverage for Gridley Operations
Every program starts with a look at how your operation actually runs: what you grow, what you process, who works for you, and where your equipment travels during harvest. From there we build coverage in these areas.
Farm Property and Structures
- Farm dwellings, rental homes, and farm labor housing
- Barns, shops, equipment sheds, and storage buildings
- Dryers, dehydrators, cold storage, and packing sheds
- Irrigation pumps, wells, and water delivery equipment
- Stored crops and grain
Standard farm property policies generally exclude flood. For low-lying ground on the Feather River side of Gridley, separate flood insurance may be available for eligible farm buildings and contents through the National Flood Insurance Program or a private flood carrier, and we review that as part of the property conversation.
Farm Liability
- Premises and operations liability
- Products and completed operations for packers and processors
- Landowner and leased acreage liability
- Farm stand, agritourism, and direct-to-consumer sales liability
- Farm and commercial umbrella
Farm Equipment and Vehicles
- Tractors, harvesters, shakers, sprayers, and orchard equipment
- Scheduled and blanket farm machinery coverage
- Equipment breakdown for dryers, dehydrators, and hullers
- Farm trucks and mobile equipment, with liability for county-road use handled under farm auto or commercial auto coverage
Agricultural Workers Compensation
- Seasonal and year-round farm labor
- Processing, dryer, and packing shed crews
- H-2A and piece-rate classification support
- Experience mod review and claims advocacy
Specialty Coverages
- Agricultural pollution liability
- Seed endorsements
- Custom farming liability
- Livestock mortality and theft
Dryers, Dehydrators, and Hullers in the Gridley Area
A lot of Gridley’s crop value moves through buildings before it leaves town, and those buildings carry risks a farm policy written for open ground can miss. A prune dehydrator runs hot around the clock for a few weeks every summer. A rice dryer fills with grain and dust at harvest. A walnut huller and dryer can be the most valuable structure on the ranch and the hardest to replace mid-season.
For these operations we look at property values and replacement cost, equipment breakdown coverage for burners, fans, and conveyors, and stock coverage for crops in storage or in process. We also review business income for shutdowns caused by a covered loss. A mechanical breakdown is not always included, so we check whether an equipment breakdown endorsement extends it, and we look at waiting periods and limits against a drying or hulling season that may last only a few weeks. If your dryer or huller handles crops that belong to other growers, that product needs its own coverage, usually bailee or customers’ goods coverage. Your own inventory and your customers’ product may need different coverage forms, limits, and valuation terms. Depending on the carrier and the size of the operation, this can be one farm or agribusiness package or several coordinated policies.
Why an Independent Farm Agent Makes a Difference in Butte County
A captive agent can only offer one company’s farm program. If that company does not like dehydrators, or has a cap on dryer values, or is pulling back in Butte County, the answer stops there. As an independent agency, we take Gridley operations to the farm and agribusiness markets that fit them, including Nationwide Agribusiness, Travelers Agribusiness, Liberty Mutual, Zenith Agribusiness, Chubb Agribusiness, Granwest, Philadelphia Insurance, and Capital Insurance Group (CIG).
Switching starts with a side-by-side review of your current program. We put any gaps or changes we find in writing before anything moves, and we confirm new coverage is in place before recommending that you cancel the old policy. Where the carrier allows an agent-of-record change, you may be able to keep your current policy and move only the servicing to Oakview. There is no pressure and no obligation.
What Our Farm Clients Are Saying
Oakview has earned 850+ five-star Google reviews from clients across the Sacramento Valley, including growers, ranchers, and ag business owners in Butte County. Clients tell us they value advisors who come out to the operation, explain coverage in plain terms, and pick up the phone when something goes wrong at harvest.
Read what our clients say on Google.
Frequently Asked Questions: Gridley Farm Insurance
Do you insure prune dehydrators in Gridley, including Sunsweet grower-members?
Yes. Prune dehydrators need coverage for the building, equipment breakdown on burners and fans, fruit in the tunnels, and business income if a covered loss stops drying during the season. We work with Sunsweet grower-members and independent prune operations around Gridley to cover the orchard and the dehydrator together.
How do you insure rice drying and storage for Gridley-area growers?
We review the dryer building, equipment breakdown, stored grain, liability, and business income together. Depending on the carrier and how the dryer operates, it may fit inside a farm or agribusiness program or need its own commercial policy. If you dry rice for other growers, their grain needs bailee or customers’ goods coverage. Our rice farm insurance page has more detail.
Can you insure kiwifruit and other specialty crops in Gridley?
Yes. Kiwifruit, chestnuts, and sugar plums bring their own questions: vine and tree values, specialized harvest and packing equipment, cold storage, and liability for direct sales. We work with carriers that write specialty orchard operations, not only commodity crops.
Do you insure walnut and almond hullers in the Gridley area?
Yes. For hullers and dryers we structure property, equipment breakdown, business income, product liability, and bailee coverage for grower-owned nuts on the premises. See our walnut farm insurance and almond farm insurance pages for more.
Does farm insurance cover flooding in Gridley?
Standard farm property policies generally exclude flood. Separate flood insurance may be available for eligible farm buildings and contents through the National Flood Insurance Program or a private flood carrier. Coverage for equipment, stored crops, and irrigation infrastructure varies, so we review each Gridley property individually, especially low-lying ground toward the Feather River.
Do you cover farm stands and direct sales in Gridley?
Yes. A farm stand, a u-pick, or shipping fruit direct to customers brings visitor, premises, and product liability that a standard farm policy may not address. We review those activities with the carrier and add the liability coverage or endorsements that are available, subject to policy terms and exclusions.
Can one advisor handle my Gridley farm, home, and vehicles?
Yes. Many Gridley clients keep the farm, the family home, and personal vehicles with one advisor so nothing falls between policies. For home, auto, and business coverage, see our Gridley insurance page.
How does switching my Gridley farm policy to Oakview work?
We start with a side-by-side review of your current program and put any gaps or changes in writing before anything moves. We confirm new coverage is in place before recommending that you cancel the old policy. Where the carrier allows an agent-of-record change, you may be able to keep your current policy and move only the servicing to Oakview.
How do I get a farm insurance quote in Gridley?
Call our office at (530) 674-5054 or request a quote online. We will learn how your operation runs and build recommendations around it.
Serving Gridley and Surrounding Farm Communities
Along with Gridley, we work with farms and ag businesses in Biggs, Richvale, Durham, Oroville, and across Butte County. That covers zip codes 95948 (Gridley), 95917 (Biggs), 95974 (Richvale), 95938 (Durham), and 95965 and 95966 (Oroville).
Nearby Oakview farm pages: Biggs, Live Oak, Richvale. For all of our farm programs, see our farm and agriculture insurance page.
For home, auto, and business coverage, see our Gridley insurance page.
For local farm resources and advocacy, visit the Butte County Farm Bureau.
Running a prune dehydrator that was last appraised before the newest tunnels went in? Drying rice or hulling nuts for neighbors and not sure their crop is covered? Adding a farm stand, a cold room, or a bigger harvest crew this season? These are the conversations we have with Gridley growers every week. Call us at (530) 674-5054 or use the button below to start your quote.