East Anglia/UK: Farming costs soar three times more than inflation
Farmland prices reached record highs last year, says RICS - Credit: James Bass
FARMING’S costs have risen by 4.3% in the past six months – about three times more than the latest official inflation figures, it was revealed at this week’s Norfolk Farming Conference.
The latest half-year figures as calculated by the Anglia Farmers Agricultural Inflation Index showed that prices have risen by 4.39% since August.
Delegates at the John Innes Centre on Norwich Research Park were told that the latest figure represents a sharp increase from the AgInflation’s 3.38% for the 12 months to August 2012.
The biggest increase in the latest half-year figures include a 16.9% surge in the animal health products and feed, 11.2% for fuel and a 10.2% rise in seed costs.
A shortage of cereal seed, especially for spring-sown varieties, has also added to the inflationary pressure. The cost of machinery fell by 6.4%.
Increased costs have been reported across every sector with livestock hit the hardest with dairy up by 10.07% and beef and lamb by 9.83%.
Combinable crop costs were up 2.7% and sugar beet by 3.73%.
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Meanwhile, the potato sector has seen a 10.89% cost increase.