“Cost level weighs on us”
Farmers’ association complains about the tense situation
06/25/2023, 08:35 am
Higher spending on energy and fertilizers: The situation is tricky for the farmers. Even if there was a slight relief recently, the farmers’ association is anything but satisfied.
The farmers’ association expects the business situation to remain tense despite slight relief in spending on energy and fertilizers. “The higher level of costs continues to burden us, even if we are no longer at the extreme level we were before,” said Farmers’ President Joachim Rukwied before the German Farmers’ Day in Münster next week.
At the same time, declining producer prices can be seen for several products. “With wheat, we had a short peak of more than 350 euros per ton, now prices have collapsed again to around 240 euros per ton.” Less can now also be achieved with rapeseed and milk. “The only exception is the pig sector, which is coming out of a deep crisis,” said Rukwied.
The farmers’ president welcomed the rise in prices: “It was long overdue for prices to go up. But that also has to do with the fact that production has fallen massively. We are now slowly having the effect that goods are becoming scarcer on the market .”
In view of the recently weaker increase in consumer prices, the farmer’s president said: “I assume that current cost increases for most foods have now been priced in.” The following applies: the higher the degree of processing, the lower the influence of the price of the raw product. “In the case of rolls, the proportion of wheat, rye or spelt is marginal, so the other costs were the main price drivers,” said Rukwied with a view to increases in energy, wage and logistics costs.