Charges for contracting will have to go up and be passed on to the farmer, contractors have said at Grass 2026.

John White a contractor from Johnstown Co Kilkenny said that it will be more difficult for contractors to stay waiting for full payment like they used to due to higher input costs.

In terms of the fuel package, he said “it’ll be some help but we still don’t know when exactly it’s going to come.”

ADVERTISEMENT

“We are busy enough, the work still has to be done. It’s a big crippler with the price of diesel but at the end of the day the work still has to be done.”

White said that labour is becoming a bigger issue in contracting, “labour is getting scarcer and scarcer, it will shortly be contractors biggest issue.”

“Everything’s a bigger cost, everything’s a bigger gamble which is the biggest problem,” he said.

Another contractor, who did not wish to be named, said that contractors might have to ask farmers to pay a deposit upfront or to pay their bill sooner than usual.

“It’s a difficult situation to be in, putting that pressure on farmers because like us they are under pressure with rising costs too,” he said.

Contractor Desmond Booth from Castlecomer, Co Kilkenny said that fuel prices are a huge problem for contractors.

He also said that the Government reacted badly to the fuel situation.

Booth said that it’s difficult to get people to do contracting work, and it has been a problem for a few years now.

“Nobody wants to do that kind of work, nobody wants to be out late nights and the long hours,” he said.

He said that contractors will have to up their prices.

“What else can you do, if not you’re running at a loss,” he said.

“Contractors will have to get paid by farmers sooner to be able to cover costs and wages,” he said.

Michael Foley from west Limerick said that the Government’s fuel package is only temporary and more needs to be done for the sector in the long-term.