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Diesel costs impacting all types of farming operations

Despite many differences in their operations, a pair of Midwestern farmers say rising diesel costs are cutting into already tight margins.  

Jeff Scates, who raises corn and soybeans in far southern Illinois, says the pre-harvest market rally has helped offset some of the impact, but…

“The jury’s still out.”  He says, “We still got a long way to go on harvest and seems like diesel prices just keep going up, and fertilizer being spread in the fall is higher yet than it was last year.”

AUDIO: Jeff Scates – Illinois farmer

Raymond Dietrich, who operates a 550-cow dairy herd in eastern Wisconsin, tells Brownfield that the cost of fuel is one of his biggest concerns this fall.

“I still got to pay to haul that manure out.”  He says, “I still got to pay to get that corn silage in. I still got to pay to haul that milk to town. I mean that hauling cost for milk to town is another big factor. That used to be kind of like small potatoes, but it’s getting to be a big deal.”

As harvest ramps up across the country, the U.S. Retail Diesel Price national average is approximately $5.60 per gallon, which is up significantly from around $3.70 per gallon at this same time last year.

AUDIO: Raymond Dietrich – Wisconsin farmer