SALEM, Ohio — Diesel prices reached an all-time high on Sept. 11 at over $6 a gallon, squeezing farmers just as the fall harvest season begins.
The record price increase stems from the United States’ ongoing war with Iran and the resulting disruption to the Strait of Hormuz, which have severely throttled global oil supplies.
This is the second major blow to farmers this year: The closure also caused fertilizer prices to spike at the start of the spring planting season. Roughly a third of the global fertilizer supply passes through the Strait.
Now, the American Farm Bureau Federation estimates that few, if any, row crops will break even this year.
“A lot of our farm families are on razor-thin margins right now, and this is just adding on to the story that farmers are really hurting right now,” said Ryan Matthews, director of communications and media relations for the Ohio Farm Bureau.
Soaring diesel and fertilizer prices
Diesel prices are over 60% higher than they were in February, before the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran when prices were at $3.76 per gallon per AAA, according to the Associated Press.
The war has resulted in skyrocketing crude oil prices — the main ingredient in diesel and gasoline — as the closure of the Strait of Hormuz continues to lead to supply chain disruptions.
Russia’s war against Ukraine is also contributing to high prices, with Russia’s refining system on pause.
The average price of diesel is $6.29 per gallon, according to U.S. Energy Information Administration data. The AP notes, however, that this isn’t the first time fuel prices have been high. Before the 2008 financial crisis, diesel hit $4.74 a gallon, equivalent to $7.20 in 2026 when adjusted for inflation, and in 2022, a few months after Russia invaded Ukraine, prices hit $5.82, equivalent to $6.56 today.
Farmers will be particularly impacted: “Fuel is just one of those costs that farmers simply can’t avoid,” Matthews told Farm and Dairy.
“Combines, tractors and trucks all need diesel to run, so any sharp increase that we’re seeing right now in fuel prices is going to be particularly difficult, especially at this point in the growing season.”
Already, farmers spent $1.4 billion more on diesel fuel this year during the planting season for corn, soybeans, cotton, wheat and rice — a 63% increase from last year, according to a Joint Economic Committee Minority Report released in July.
The report analyzed state-by-state data, concluding that West Virginia and Ohio were in the top 10 states with the highest increase in planting costs associated with diesel prices — West Virginia ranked fourth and Ohio at eighth.
A tough farm economy
Meanwhile, recent data from the American Farm Bureau Federation shows a bleak outlook for row crop farmers, despite positive revenue projections from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates released earlier this month.
The national average revenue per harvested acre for corn is estimated at $857, up more than $50 from the May WASDE projections, and is $634 per acre for soybeans, up $30 from the May forecast, according to the USDA report.
Yet, farmers will still struggle to break even this year as they battle high prices for diesel and fertilizer.
Fertilizer expenses for 2026 are estimated at a record $40 billion, up 15% from the previous year. Fuel expenses, including diesel, are predicted to reach a record $22 billion this year, up 29% from 2025, according to an AFBF report released on Sept. 15.
“The net result is that despite recent price optimism, unless prices improve even further, no major row crop is projected to clear breakeven for the 2026/27 marketing year, further underscoring just how squeezed farm margins remain in this high-cost and geopolitically unstable economic environment,” said the AFBF report.
As farmers weather the storm of a high-cost economy, Matthews provides some optimism, noting the Senate Agriculture Committee passed the long-awaited Farm Bill, which includes provisions allowing year-round sales of E15.
“It will save consumers about 10 to 30 cents at the pump, but it also brings about 2.6 million more acres of corn that’s needed to supply that,” Matthews said. “Farmers are looking for more domestic outputs and domestic markets, and that’s going to be a huge win.”
The Farm Bill moves onto the Full Senate floor for consideration.
