Contractor comment CONTRACTOR COMMENTContractor Comment: Average yields and high costs biteElliot Stevens, who runs Okehampton-based contracting firm Cropmech, had an uninspiring harvest, with wet weather hampering workflow. Elliot, who works along with his father, Mark, says: “Overall, the cereal harvest… CONTRACTOR COMMENTContractor Comment: Arson attack ends baling campaignBorders contractor Daniel Freeland-Cook faced a battle with the elements this summer, with both fire and water conspiring to scupper his straw baling campaign. Relentless rain meant crop moisture remained… CONTRACTOR COMMENT'Laughable' tractor prices force expensive switch to hiringEye-watering tractor price inflation threw Derek and Linda Keeble’s purchasing regime into disarray this season, forcing them to re-examine costs and bolster their fleet with costly hire machines. For years,… CONTRACTOR COMMENTContractor Comment: Is Covid to blame for kit breakdowns?Long Covid seemingly isn’t an ailment exclusive to the human race, with mounting evidence that pandemic shutdowns are to blame for a ruck of mechanical maladies among the nation’s farm… CONTRACTOR COMMENTContractor Comment: Holding on to tractors until prices dropRain, rain, and more rain. No prizes as to what’s dominated the Cropmech calendar since our previous visit back in March. “In May we ended up calling in two diggers… CONTRACTOR COMMENTContractor Comment: Warranty dilemmas and pricey pickupsHigh lamb prices, new kit and plenty of silage in the stack have lifted spirits at Daniel Freeland-Cook’s family-run farming and contracting business, following a dismal winter that hampered lambing… CONTRACTOR COMMENTContractor Comment: Lots of plans but not enough staffThe final members of our 2024 Contractor Comment cohort are Suffolk-based Derek and Linda Keeble. See also: Contractor Comment: Infuriating weather sees new kit sit idle About the contractor Straw is… CONTRACTOR COMMENTContractor Comment: Infuriating weather sees new kit idleThird in this year's Contractor Comment hotseat is James Townley, who runs JD Townley & Son with his father Roy. See also: Contractor Comment: Interest rates a threat for Cropmech About… CONTRACTOR COMMENTContractor Comment: Interest rates a threat for CropmechFor this year’s Contractor Comment it’s all change, as we visit a fresh batch of four contracting firms located in different regions of the UK. Second up is our new… CONTRACTOR COMMENTContractor Comment: Beet lifting headaches in the BordersOur second season of Contractor Comment kicks off with the first of four new contributors – Daniel Freeland-Cook of Yetholm in the Scottish Borders. See also: High kit prices and… CONTRACTOR COMMENTHigh kit prices and falling profits pinch contractor marginsThe rains and winds of Atlantic depressions Isha and Jocelyn may have wreaked short-term havoc, but two metaphorical storms are causing South Lanarkshire contractor Jim Watt greater angst. Squeezed on… CONTRACTOR COMMENTWorkshop and building projects maintain contractor's cashflowMost agricultural contractors need a strategy for keeping the workforce busy and the bank account ticking over during the leaner winter months. And for Graham Hayllar, this is involves running… More articles
