By Sara Wood, Vice President, Ontario Federation of Agriculture
Fall harvest is underway across Ontario, with farmers working to bring in everything from corn and soybeans to vegetables and other crops. It’s one of the busiest times of the farming year, and also one of the most expensive when it comes to fuel.
This year, rising diesel prices are adding thousands of dollars to the cost of harvest, putting more financial pressure on farm businesses throughout Ontario.
It’s an impact that reaches beyond the farm: agriculture supports jobs and businesses in communities throughout the province, and keeping our farms profitable and competitive is key to our ability to produce as much of our own food, fuel, fibre and flowers here at home.
To put the impact into perspective, a modern combine, the large machine used to harvest crops like soybeans and corn, can hold approximately 1,250 litres of diesel. Last fall, filling that tank cost about $1,560. This year, the estimated cost is more than $2,600, or more than $1,000 extra every time a farmer fills the tank.
For a 500-acre farm growing corn, soybeans and wheat – an area equivalent to roughly 380 football fields – the additional cost of diesel for everything from preparing fields and planting crops to harvesting could exceed $14,000 this year compared to last.
The impact can be even greater for crops that require more fuel to produce and harvest.
Take processing tomatoes, for example, which are grown in Ontario for products like tomato sauce and canned tomatoes. Based on estimated fuel use, a 150-acre processing tomato farm could see its annual diesel bill increase from approximately $51,600 last year to more than $86,600 this year. That’s an additional $35,000 in fuel expenses for the same acreage.
These are substantial increases for doing the same work, with no guarantee of earning more money for the crops being produced.
Fuel is an essential part of farming and there isn’t much flexibility in when or how we use it. We can’t put off harvesting a crop until diesel prices come down, and cutting back on necessary fieldwork isn’t always an option.
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