CIRB Wraps 62nd Annual Meeting

Crop Insurance and Reinsurance Bureau concludes 2026 conference in California

Published on Feb. 11, 2026

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The Crop Insurance and Reinsurance Bureau (CIRB) held its 62nd annual meeting last week in Indian Wells, California, wrapping up the term of outgoing chair Lindsay Rinkenberger of Country Financial. The conference featured new speakers, including an AI expert, as well as the return of popular meteorologist Matthew Reardon of Nutrien Ag Solutions, who discussed the transition from La Nina to El Nino weather patterns and the potential impact on drought conditions.

Why it matters

The CIRB annual meeting is a key event for the crop insurance industry, bringing together leaders to discuss the latest trends, technologies, and weather patterns that impact agricultural risk management. As a major driver of losses for crop insurers, weather patterns are a critical focus area for the organization.

The details

This year's CIRB conference featured some changes to the speaker lineup, including the addition of an AI expert presentation. Returning speaker Matthew Reardon, a meteorologist with Nutrien Ag Solutions, discussed the current shift from La Nina to El Nino conditions in the Pacific Ocean, noting that El Nino typically brings better rainfall to North America's key growing regions and can help reduce drought pressure.

  • The 62nd annual CIRB meeting took place last week in Indian Wells, California.
  • Lindsay Rinkenberger's term as CIRB chair concluded at the meeting.

The players

Lindsay Rinkenberger

Director of Commercial Agribusiness Underwriting at Country Financial and outgoing chair of the Crop Insurance and Reinsurance Bureau.

Matthew Reardon

Meteorologist with Nutrien Ag Solutions who spoke at the CIRB conference about the transition from La Nina to El Nino weather patterns.

Crop Insurance and Reinsurance Bureau (CIRB)

An industry organization that held its 62nd annual meeting last week in Indian Wells, California.

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What they’re saying

“We did change up the speakers, the AI speaker was a new addition. We did bring back Matthew Reardon, who was the meteorologist and that was by popular demand. We can't not recognize the weather in our industry because that's truly what drives the losses for the most part from a crop insurance perspective.”

— Lindsay Rinkenberger, Director of Commercial Agribusiness Underwriting, Country Financial (agwired.com)

“We're looking at cooler than average sea surface temperatures in the Pacific. The expectation right now is we're probably going to transition at some point, at least a 60% chance from the Climate Prediction Center into an El Nino. We typically prefer El Nino in North America because we get better rains over our most productive growing regions. It tends to reduce drought pressure.”

— Matthew Reardon, Meteorologist, Nutrien Ag Solutions (agwired.com)

The takeaway

The CIRB annual meeting remains a critical gathering for the crop insurance industry, with a focus on emerging trends, technologies, and weather patterns that impact agricultural risk management. This year's conference featured new speakers and the return of a popular meteorologist, underscoring the industry's need to stay informed on evolving climate conditions that drive insurance losses.