Frontier apologises for £8.19/t drying charge during drought
© Tom Clarke
Frontier Agriculture has apologised to a farmer after an £8.19/t drying charge was mistakenly applied to his Group 1 wheat during an exceptionally dry harvest.
Tom Clarke, who farms near Ely in the Cambridgeshire Fens, received a price adjustment notice showing the deduction after his wheat tested at 15.1% moisture – just 0.1% above the specification.
The charge raised eyebrows among farmers, given the exceptionally dry conditions across much of East Anglia and the whole of England.
See also: NFU presses Defra over stalled crops fairness review
“I doubt there is any wheat in East Anglia anywhere near 15% moisture content in a drought year where it has not rained since April in some places,” Mr Clarke told Farmers Weekly.
He shared the notice on X, prompting a strong reaction from other farmers, many of whom are dealing with low-moisture grain, shrivelled crops and cracked soils.
Really, @FrontierAg ? Really?
— Tom Clarke 🇺🇦 🌻 (@Tom_Clarke) August 11, 2026
Some also questioned whether driers would even have been running, given how dry much of the wheat harvest has been.
Ben Martin, an arable farmer in west Suffolk, said: “There is zero chance that’s getting dried – that will be blended with some of the 10% stuff they no doubt have. In fact, why aren’t you sending them an invoice for helping them out?!”
Mr Clarke said the wheat had been committed on 13 March, during the final year of a favourable deal offered by Frontier to former Fengrain co-op members when they bought the store.
His wheat was therefore attracting a £50/t milling premium.
The drying charge also prompted speculation among some farmers on X that it could reduce the value of the £50/t milling premium.
“I read on X with interest other farmers checking Frontier’s maths and wondering how a 0.1% moisture excess ends up with a 3.8% weight loss and costs £8.19/t,” said Mr Clarke.
However, after Mr Clarke shared the notice, Frontier contacted him to apologise, explaining that the charge had been generated automatically and should not have been sent.\
Automated charge
In a reply on X, Frontier Agriculture said: “Tom, you’re right to call this out. An automated charge was triggered on this load in error and shouldn’t have been applied on this occasion.
“We’re removing it and the associated weight loss from your account and conducting a review into how it occurred. Sorry for the mistake.”
As a former AHDB Cereals and Oilseeds chairman with more than 6,000 X followers, Mr Clarke said his profile gave him a platform to challenge the charge that many farmers would not have.
The incident comes as Defra reviews contractual practices and fairness in the UK combinable crops and oilseeds sector, including concerns over power imbalances, pricing transparency and grain sampling.
Last year, the department invited arable farmers to submit examples of where they believed their position in the supply chain was being exploited.
Frontier has been approached for comment.
