Risk is an unavoidable, but manageable, element in the business of agricultural production and marketing. Agricultural production can vary widely from year to year due to unforeseen weather, disease/pest infestations, and/or market conditions causing wide swings in yields and commodity prices. This paper reviews the weaknesses of traditional crop insurance programs and highlights new developments, especially as they regard Latin America, that hold promise of making agricultural insurance more accessible, more efficient, and more sustainable.