Farmers Weekly Awards 2026: Contractor of the Year

Agricultural contracting is a numbers game, and few will have a better grasp of moneys in and out than Nigel Harper.

Since starting out 15 years ago, his business has grown to be the biggest in Cheshire, thanks to a laser focus on delivering value to customers.

This comes not from race-to-the-bottom prices – his services are generally the most expensive in the area – but rather by maximising the performance of crops and cows.

See also: FW Awards: Meet the 2026 Contractor of the Year finalists

The power behind his approach comes as much from software as it does machines.

To ensure he sees a return on the top-end and often tech-laden kit his customers expect, Nigel scrutinises data from John Deere’s Operations Center platform, the AgDrive work app and Xero’s accounting software.

This allows him to monitor productivity to help find potential efficiency gains and forecast cash flow to protect the margins necessary for long-term sustainability.

Machinery

Nigel has gradually refined the services he offers, going all-in on those that are most important to his customers while sub-contracting or forgoing those that don’t warrant the cost of machinery or staff.

This strategy has seen combining scaled back from 485ha to 100ha and forage harvesting ramped up to 8,100ha, with many customers now on multi-cut systems and visited up to six times a season.

Machinery buying decisions are steered by their needs, as well as advice from agronomists and feed reps, and Nigel’s own research.

One of the most significant recent investments was 14 John Deere tractors, which replaced a fleet of hired-in Case IHs after the hourly rate shot up by 50%.

This move gained him a fully integrated telematics system through Deere’s Operations Center. One of his subsequent focuses has been machine utilisation – productive work versus transport and idle time – which has become a point of competition among staff.

Meanwhile, AgDrive provides pre-use machinery checklists, timesheet recording and job traceability. The latter has virtually eliminated invoice queries.

Nigel’s replacement policy is partially fluid. Rakes are bought new and stay for about four years and tractors rarely exceed 5,000 hours, while the second-hand loading shovels, muckspreaders and sprayer hang around far longer to help balance costs.

And he opts to hire in the self-propelled Krone choppers, allowing him to fix his costs without tying up capital in power units.

Instead, the money can be funnelled into more efficient implements. This includes an engine-driven slurry pump to save fuel and depreciation, and two tri-axle Richard Western silage trailers that double up as 50cu m nurse tanks. These allow him to shift more material with the same labour.

Staff and customers

There are now 105 customers on the books, up from 75 two years ago. All are invoiced weekly or set up on monthly direct debit payments.

Given that 85% of them are dairy farms, the latter has proved popular as it mirrors milk cheque income to ease cash flow – an arrangement that suits both parties.

Nigel has delegated some of his previously never-ending responsibilities, with part-time office staff handling credit control and HR.

This leaves him more time to trade advice with customers and understand both how their business is changing and how he needs to adapt accordingly.

Staff support is a top priority, with the 12 contracting full-timers and 16 seasonal extras having annual appraisals, quarterly health and safety meetings, toolbox talks and regular operator training.

To manage their work/life balance, and that of the other eight in Nigel’s expanding dairy enterprise, contracting staff shuffle between the two during winter.

The farming business has grown from 120 cows nine years ago to 1,000 today, and he is now his contracting firm’s second biggest customer.

What the judges say

Embracing the latest work documentation and accounting software has tightened Nigel’s grip on costs and helped make efficiency gains that improve customer service and make his business more sustainable.