EXHIBIT 23(b)
                                                               -------------


                   CONSENT OF KPMG LLP, INDEPENDENT AUDITORS


The Board of Directors and Stockholders
EMC Insurance Group Inc.:

     We consent to incorporation by reference in Registration Statement Nos.
2-93738, 33-49335, 33-49337, 33-49339 and 333-45279 on Forms S-8 and No.
33-34499 on Form S-3 of EMC Insurance Group Inc. of our reports dated
February 27, 2001, relating to the consolidated balance sheet of EMC
Insurance Group Inc. and Subsidiaries as of December 31, 2000, and
the related consolidated statements of income, comprehensive income,
stockholders' equity and cash flows and related financial statement schedules
for each of the years in the two-year period ended December 31, 2000, which
reports appear in the December 31, 2001 annual report on Form 10-K of EMC
Insurance Group Inc.



                                       /s/ KPMG  LLP
                                       Des Moines, Iowa
                                       March 28, 2002