JERSEY’S farmers have faced a double whammy of challenges this year with a sharp increase in oil prices coupled with difficult weather conditions affecting their operations.
The cost of diesel, which is used in heavy machinery like tractors and has now hit £2 per litre, has led to increased costs.
Mike Renouard, business unit director at the Jersey Royal Company, said: “All our machinery uses a lot of red diesel. All our minibuses are on white diesel, so it has a major impact.”
Red diesel is typically less expensive than white diesel fuel found at the pumps but has still seen significant increases in price, with Mr Renouard stating that the company’s fuel costs have “more than doubled”.
The price of oil began fluctuating when Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, but this has been compounded by sharp, volatile rises since February, when the conflict between America and Iran began.
“It’s not just the use of our diesel on the farm,” Mr Renouard explained. “It’s in the products that we use on the farm and also our distribution chain.”
Fertilisers are made using processes that require either natural gas or components derived from oil and plastic, which is used to cover potato fields, is made using oil, while distribution using ferry and lorry travel are dependent on fuel.
While price rises for products might be necessary, Mr Renouard said this has become increasingly difficult. He said: “I don’t think consumers can afford food prices to go up too much either, so we try to absorb as much of that cost as we can without having to pass it on to the consumer.”
Potato yields have also been down this year, following the third-wettest winter on record and the hottest summer on record.
Despite the challenges, Mr Renouard, who is also vice-president of the Jersey Farmers’ Union, said farmers were “reasonably positive” as they approached the next planting season.
With planting not beginning until January, “anything can happen between now and then,” he said, adding he was hopeful that suppliers’ predictions that fuel prices would start come down would prove true.
He said businesses are in contact with their suppliers and exploring options such as fixing prices – where a price is agreed for a certain period of time – or paying weekly, but Mr Renouard said these approaches could be “a bit of a lottery,” due to the unpredictable nature of global politics.
However, he did say that the weather has also impacted main crop potato yields in the UK, which could present an opportunity for Jersey growers as there is a possibility that, with fewer potatoes available, people could turn to Jersey Royals as a replacement.
Deputy Lucy Stephenson recently withdrew a proposition which, if approved, would have axed 10p per litre on fuel duty for the rest of the year, following discussions with the Council of Ministers.
Under the 2027 Budget proposals, which are due to be debated later this year, fuel duty would be frozen next year.
