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'Price of red diesel is putting us in the red'

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'Price of red diesel is putting us in the red'
'Price of red diesel is putting us in the red'55 minutes agoShareSaveAdd as preferred on GoogleLinsey SmithEast Yorkshire and Lincolnshire rural affairs correspondentBBC Harriet White is wearing a mustard-coloured jumper and standing next to a red tractor. She is filling the tractor up with diesel. She has short brown hair.BBCHarriet White's family say the rising price of red diesel is endangering future food security

Farmers say the rising cost of red diesel is making them reconsider whether to plant future crops.

Harriet White, who farms near Mablethorpe, Lincolnshire, said her family was also reconsidering every penny they spend, including their young son's nursery fees.

Red diesel, a cheaper fuel available to farmers for use in off-road agricultural vehicles, cost 78p per litre before the war in the Middle East, compared with £1.22 on Monday, according to the price tracking website Boiler Juice.

The National Farmers Union (NFU) said it was monitoring prices, which remained "critical".

"Red Diesel is putting us in the red," said White, who is predicting food shortages in the coming months and years, caused by a reduction in planting.

"If you are not going to get as much milling wheat, then you won't get as much bread," she explained.

The price of red diesel rose to £1.38 on 10 March, following the outbreak of the conflict in the Middle East on 28 February, according to Boiler Juice, which tracks prices across a network of UK suppliers.

It has fallen since the US and Iran announced a ceasefire on 8 April, but remains 56% higher than before the war.

White is calling on the government to help.

A government spokesperson said it had extended a 5p fuel duty cut until September and red diesel continued to benefit from an 80% tax discount.

But White, a mother-of-two, said her family was having to rethink household expenditure, including nursery costs, which were "going up as well".

Anna Jackson is wearing a green jacket and kneeling next to her black and white boarder collie dog. They are in a grain store and a large pile of grain can be seen behind them.Anna Jackson says she is looking for more diversification projects to help her farm

In March, the NFU warned food prices were likely to rise because farmers were unable to absorb all of the extra costs they were facing.

Anna Jackson, who farms near Scunthorpe, said the price of fertiliser was also becoming unmanageable.

The 33-year-old, who took over the family business before Christmas, said a tonne bag had gone up by 14%, from £336 to £390, since last year.

Her "biggest frustration" was that the price they were paid for their wheat was not rising in line with their costs.

The business was "starting to make lots of cuts", including reducing farm insurance, which she described as "scary".

A play farm and café on their land earned more than farming itself, Jackson said, and she was now looking into more diversification projects.

"As a farmer you're a gambler," she added. "But you don't want to be a gambler."

More on this story

Farmers question future over fuel and fertiliser costs

'Fertiliser costs mean I'm better off not planting'

'I've gone from being a photographer to being a farmer'

Related internet links

NFU

MablethorpeUK farmingAgricultureCost of Living FuelScunthorpe

Originally reported by BBC News