Farmers’ costs climb, IPM reveals

On-farm fuel costs have climbed again in the past month, reflecting the firmer value of crude oil, according to the Farmers Weekly/NFU Inputs Price Monitor for November.

“As forecast in October, prices for red diesel, kerosene and white diesel have all edged up,” said NFU inputs adviser Peter Garbutt.

Reported figures show an average national price for November at 44.98p/litre for red diesel, with 37.65p/litre and 100.44p/litre for kerosene and white diesel respectively.

“With the spot price of crude remaining relatively steady in the high $70’s over the last month, the continued increase in fuel price has brought calls from some motoring organisations for greater transparency in fuel pricing formulae,” said Mr Garbutt.

Water prices have also increased across all regions, with the average reported price rising by 10.26p/m³ to 124.12p/ m³. But looking further ahead, industry regulator Ofwat has recently pledged to ensure that water bills remain broadly unchanged for the next five years.

Meanwhile, fertiliser costs have increased, with domestic ammonium nitrate quoted at an average £183.52/t by farmers taking part in the IPM survey in November.

“This is below the intended official retail price, but with estimates of a growth in the market fuelled by the arable sector, the question will be for how much longer?” said Mr Garbutt.

| For full IPM results for November click here. And why not take part in this month’s survey of your recent input surveys. Only by enough farmers taking part can we ensure the data is robust.

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