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88. Bridging the gap between farming expertise and procurement strategy

Published on March 17th, 2026 | Last updated on March 18th, 2026

Minette Batters’ recent Farming Profitability Report predicts farm input costs will rise to 30% higher in 2026 than they were in 2020. With procurement of inputs typically representing 30-70% of any farm business’s revenue, it’s clear that effective procurement can have a major impact on profitability. AF’s Head of Machinery & General Inputs, Kristian Dunham, explores how procurement thinking is already embedded in farming – and why rising costs highlighted in recent analysis from Minette Batters mean procurement strategy will become even more important.

Farmers already understand procurement – they just don’t call it that

“Farmers understand soil health, machinery efficiency, livestock performance, fuel consumption, weather risk and market volatility in a way few outside the sector ever truly grasp.