With fuel prices at record highs and the costs of labour and machinery escalating, the National Association of Agricultural Contractors (NAAC) is advising farmers to expect price rises. The Peterborough-based organisation has just released its latest survey of contracting prices.
Carried out based on red diesel costing £1/litre, contractors are being advised to calculate their fees carefully to ensure they are covering costs and can make a margin. This survey (link below) is only an average figure and the NAAC says that farmers should expect their contractors’ prices to vary, plus be prepared that a fuel surcharge may be necessary if prices continue to fluctuate.
“These are difficult times for everyone, and it is vital that contractors work closely with their customers to ensure all businesses can remain viable and productive,” comments Jill Hewitt, NAAC chief executive. “Profit must not be a dirty word if contractors are to keep pace with new technology, training and investment in their businesses, to supply the professionalism, machines and skills that are increasingly being demanded to meet farmers’ sustainability and environmental targets.”
The NAAC has recently launched a new on-line pricing tool for its membership, with Andersons Consulting, to allow contractors to evaluate each operation, considering all costs, so that they can see the cold, hard facts for each job.
The tool takes account of numerous variables such as depreciation, repair costs of individual machines, yard costs, insurance and office staff, before breaking each job down, taking into account fuel costs, area of work, work rate, labour, downtime and profit. This will allow quotes to be made, backed up by statistics, to get to a price that is realistic.
The new prices survey for 2022-23 can be found at: https://www.naac.co.uk/pricesguide/
