Cotton farmers brace themselves as fuel prices continue to bite

Story: Tricia Duffield

The continuing fuel prices and supply shortages in NSW are hitting the bottom line for cotton farmers, impacting harvest, irrigation and transport. Increased costs for diesel are reducing profit margins and forcing some to change their crop planting.

The high cost of diesel is the biggest input cost and on some of the more highly mechanised cotton farms, diesel makes up most of the total energy consumption, with half used for irrigation pumps. The rising cost of moving the crop to gins and to port is another factor impacting the cotton industry, which is feeling the pinch in almost every phase of the industry, from sowing to irrigation, harvesting, processing and transport.

The Rural Financial Counselling Service reports that some cotton farmers in the northern regions have sought assistance due to financial distress and an inability to meet commitments. […]

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Eight John Deere cotton pickers lined up on the Janbeth Road at Bourke after the 2026 harvest. Inset – Local cotton grower Tony Thompson. Photos TWH