Oakview Insurance Services writes farm and agribusiness insurance for Chico, CA (zip codes 95926, 95928, and 95973) and the orchard and rice country across Butte County. Mariah Davis founded Oakview in her hometown of Yuba City in 2010, and today 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. Around Chico, the work usually means walnut and almond orchards, the hullers and dryers that serve them, rice ground to the west, and farm buildings near the foothills where wildfire shapes what carriers will write. Request a quote or call us at (530) 674-5054.
Why Chico Growers Choose Oakview
Chico-area operations rarely stop at the orchard. Many run a huller or dryer, lease ground across several parcels, and own buildings in high-fire country. Here is what we bring to that work:
- AFIS-certified and Nationwide Farm Certified agents who work with orchard, rice, and processing operations across Butte County
- Huller and dryer coverage built around equipment breakdown, stored product, and harvest-season downtime, not just the trees
- Experience placing farm buildings and dwellings in high-fire Butte County, including the California FAIR Plan as a last resort when standard markets decline
- 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.
- One dedicated advisor for the farm, your home, and your vehicles, not a call center. Meet our team.
Chico and Butte County Agriculture
Agriculture is one of Butte County’s largest industries, and Chico sits in the middle of it. Walnut and almond orchards surround the city, rice takes over to the west toward the Sacramento River, and hullers, dryers, and dehydrators keep the harvest moving each fall.
Butte County’s 2025 Crop and Livestock Report put gross agricultural value at $702.7 million, up $113.7 million from 2024. English walnuts led at $178 million. Rice ranked second at $164 million, helped by about 27,000 more planted acres than the year before, and almonds came in at $144.7 million, with prunes at $34.7 million. Nursery stock, olives, kiwifruit, pecans, and organic production add to that base.
Values move a lot from one year to the next. Walnut prices rebounded sharply in 2024, and rice acreage climbed in 2025 after falling the year before. When crop values and acreage shift like that, equipment limits, stored-product values, and liability exposure deserve a fresh look at each renewal.
Wildfire Exposure for Butte County Orchards and Farm Structures
Butte County farms sit in the same landscape that reshaped the homeowners market after the 2018 Camp Fire and the 2020 North Complex fire. Orchards, hullers, dryers, barns, shops, and farm dwellings carry wildfire exposure, especially along the foothill edge east of Chico, and coverage availability and underwriting rules vary a lot by carrier and location. As standard carriers have pulled back from high-fire zip codes, some farm buildings and dwellings no longer qualify for a standard policy.
We start with the standard and specialty markets still writing Butte County farm property. Defensible space, clearance around structures, and documented mitigation affect both whether a carrier will write a building and what it costs, so we help you document that work. When those markets are unavailable, the California FAIR Plan, the state’s last-resort program, may offer basic fire coverage for eligible farm dwellings, barns, equipment-storage buildings, and certain agricultural structures. Eligibility depends on each building’s occupancy, construction, and use, so hullers and processing buildings have to be confirmed case by case. FAIR Plan coverage is limited, so we also review companion policies for the exposures it leaves out. Oakview is an independent broker and is not an agent of, and does not represent, the California FAIR Plan. Our breakdown of the 2026 FAIR Plan rate increase covers what has changed, and our Butte County High Fire Insurance page covers homeowner options.
Crops and Operations We Insure in the Chico Area
Butte County’s strength is its range, and many Chico operations farm more than one crop. We insure Chico-area producers and ag businesses involved in:
- Walnuts and almonds, including hullers and dryers
- Rice, from field operations to drying and storage
- Prunes and dried plums, including dehydrators
- Olives, kiwifruit, and diversified orchards
- Nursery stock and certified organic operations
- Cattle, custom harvesters, and grower-packer-shipper operations
For more detail by crop, see our walnut farm insurance, almond farm insurance, and rice farm insurance pages.
Walnut and Almond Orchards
Walnuts and almonds are the county’s two leading tree crops, and harvest is when the exposure peaks. Shakers, sweepers, and harvesters run on county roads between blocks, crews work long days, and a crop moves from the orchard floor to the huller within days. We review orchard property, harvest equipment, farm liability, and the buildings that support the operation. We also look at how tractors and harvesters use public roads, so the right farm auto or commercial auto coverage is in place.
Rice Operations
Rice ground west of Chico brings its own mix of field equipment, pumps, dryers, and storage. We set equipment and stored-product limits to current values rather than what they were a decade ago, and we review how flat, low ground near canals and drains affects flood exposure for shops and stored equipment. Most farm property policies exclude flood, so we price separate flood coverage where it fits.
Prunes, Olives, and Diversified Orchards
Prunes, olives, kiwifruit, and nursery stock often share equipment, labor, and buildings with a walnut or almond operation. We build one program that accounts for every crop, the dehydrators and structures that support them, and the crews who move between blocks.
Farm Coverage for Chico and Butte County Operations
A Chico farm program has to fit fields, buildings, equipment, and people that often span several parcels. Most programs we build include the pieces below.
Farm Property and Structures
We schedule the buildings and fixed equipment that keep the operation running:
- Farm dwellings, rental homes, and farm labor housing
- Barns, shops, equipment sheds, and storage buildings
- Huller, dryer, and dehydrator buildings
- Irrigation pumps, wells, and water delivery equipment
- Stored crops, with limits and valuation reviewed against current market values
Farm Liability, Auto, and Umbrella
Liability coverage starts with premises and operations and builds from there. That can include custom farming, leased ground, seasonal labor, and agritourism. Trucks, trailers, and field vehicles go on farm and commercial auto, and a farm umbrella adds limits above the primary policies for a large claim.
Equipment and Machinery
Machinery prices have climbed, and older equipment limits often fall short of what a replacement costs today. Tractors, shakers, sweepers, harvesters, and sprayers can be covered on a schedule or under blanket limits. Theft, fire, collision, overturn, and transport losses can be included, depending on the coverage form and endorsements you choose.
Workers Compensation for Ag Crews
We place workers compensation for seasonal and year-round agricultural labor, including harvest crews and processing staff, through carriers that understand farm and processing classifications. We also help growers keep job classifications accurate and advocate on claims.
Organic Operations
Certified and transitioning organic operations often hold stored product worth more than conventional crops, so we review how each policy values stock. Spray drift from neighboring ground is a real exposure in mixed farming country, and we look at chemical drift and agricultural pollution liability options too. Loss of organic certification, or the price difference that comes with it, is not automatically covered.
Huller, Dryer, and Agribusiness Insurance in Chico
Butte County runs a lot of walnut and almond hullers, dryers, and processing operations, and they carry commercial exposures well past a standard farm policy. A breakdown at the wrong point in harvest can stop the whole line, and a facility often holds crops that belong to other growers. Coverage for these operations usually includes:
- Equipment breakdown for hullers, dryers, and processing lines
- Products liability for nuts, rice, and fruit you process or store
- Bailee or customers’ goods coverage for other growers’ crops in your care
- Commercial property for processing facilities, storage, and warehouses
- Business income coverage for downtime during harvest and processing season
- General liability for sites open to growers, haulers, and the public
Why an Independent Farm Agent Matters in Butte County
A captive agent represents one company. When that company tightens its farm appetite, raises rates, or declines a huller or a building in a high-fire zip code, the options stop there. Oakview has access to more than 100 A-rated carriers, including our core panel of 30+ direct-appointed carriers plus surplus lines and specialty markets. Our farm and agribusiness markets include Nationwide Agribusiness, Travelers Agribusiness, Liberty Mutual, Zenith Agribusiness, Chubb Agribusiness, Granwest, Philadelphia Insurance, and Capital Insurance Group (CIG), so the orchard, the processing operation, and the crew can each go to a carrier that wants that business.
Switching is simpler than most growers expect. We review your current policies and equipment schedules, quote the program, and coordinate effective dates to avoid a gap between carriers, confirming the new coverage is bound before your current policies are canceled.
What Our Farm Clients Are Saying
Oakview has earned 850+ five-star Google reviews from farm, business, and family clients across the Sacramento Valley, including growers and agribusiness owners in Butte County. Clients tell us they value an advisor who learns the operation, shops the market honestly, and answers the phone during harvest and after a claim.
Read what our clients say on Google.
Frequently Asked Questions: Chico Farm Insurance
Do you insure walnut and almond orchards around Chico?
Yes. Walnuts and almonds are Butte County’s two leading tree crops, and they make up a large share of our Chico-area farm work. We cover orchard property, equipment, farm liability, and the buildings that support the operation, and we review how harvest equipment uses public roads so the right auto coverage is in place.
What coverage does a Chico-area huller or dryer need?
Hullers and dryers carry exposures a standard farm policy was not built for. Most need equipment breakdown, products liability for processed and stored product, bailee or customers’ goods coverage when they hold other growers’ crops, commercial property, and business income coverage for downtime during harvest.
How do you handle wildfire exposure for farm buildings in Butte County?
We start with the standard and specialty markets still writing Butte County farm property and help document defensible space and mitigation, which affect both insurability and price. When no standard market will write a structure, the California FAIR Plan may be a last-resort option for eligible farm buildings, often paired with companion coverage. Oakview is an independent broker and is not an agent of, and does not represent, the California FAIR Plan.
Can the California FAIR Plan insure barns and other farm buildings in Butte County?
In many cases, yes. Since 2022, the FAIR Plan has offered commercial property coverage for eligible farm buildings such as barns, equipment-storage buildings, and crop-storage structures, in addition to farm dwellings. Coverage is basic fire protection with set limits, and each building’s occupancy, construction, and use go through underwriting, so hullers and processing buildings need to be confirmed case by case. Oakview is an independent broker and is not an agent of, and does not represent, the California FAIR Plan.
Do you cover rice operations west of Chico?
Yes. We cover rice field operations, pumps and irrigation equipment, dryers, storage, and liability, with equipment and stored-product limits set to current values. Most farm property policies exclude flood, so we also review separate flood coverage for shops and stored equipment on low ground.
Do you insure prunes, olives, kiwifruit, and nursery operations in Butte County?
Yes. Many Chico-area operations grow more than one crop. We cover the dehydrators, buildings, equipment, liability, and labor for prune, olive, kiwifruit, and nursery enterprises alongside the main orchard or rice operation.
Can you write workers compensation for Butte County harvest crews?
Yes. We place workers compensation for seasonal harvest crews, year-round farm employees, and huller and processing staff through carriers that understand farm and processing classifications, and we help keep classifications accurate.
Can one advisor handle my Chico farm, home, and vehicles?
Yes. Many Chico-area growers have one advisor coordinate farm, business, home, and auto coverage so the policies work together and gaps are less likely. For personal coverage details, see our Chico insurance page.
How do I get a farm insurance quote in Chico?
Call our office at (530) 674-5054 or request a quote online. We will take time to learn your operation and recommend coverage built around how you farm.
Serving Chico and Surrounding Farm Communities
We serve growers, ranchers, and agribusinesses in Chico and nearby Butte County farm communities, including Durham, Nord, Dayton, Biggs, Richvale, Gridley, Palermo, and Oroville. That covers zip codes 95926, 95928, and 95973 (Chico), 95938 (Durham), 95917 (Biggs), 95974 (Richvale), 95948 (Gridley), 95968 (Palermo), and 95965 and 95966 (Oroville).
Nearby Oakview farm pages: Durham, Biggs, Richvale. For all of our farm programs, see our farm and agriculture insurance page.
For home, auto, and business coverage, see our Chico insurance page.
For local farm resources and advocacy, visit the Butte County Farm Bureau.
Huller or dryer still insured at values from five years ago? Orchard shop or farm dwelling near the foothills that just received a non-renewal? More rice ground this year and a bigger crew for harvest? These are the conversations we have with Chico-area growers. Call us at (530) 674-5054 or use the button below to start your quote.