Custom farm work rates in North Dakota have been updated and are available at http://www.ag.ndsu.edu/pubs/agecon/market/ec499.pdf or in printed version from any North Dakota State University Extension Service office.

For the first time, this report includes rates for vertical tillage and installing drainage tile. The average reported rate for vertical tillage was $9.19 per acre. The average rate for installing drain tile was reported as $576 per acre.

Included in this report are rates for land tillage, seeding, fertilizer and pesticide application, haying operations, harvesting operations, drying grain, hauling crops, custom farming and several miscellaneous operations. Rental rates for a limited number of machines, as well as grain and machinery storage, are included.

Most custom rates have increased 10 to 20 percent from the previous survey conducted in 2007. Rates for custom combining, aerial pesticide application and snow removal were exceptions, rising about 25 to 30 percent. Survey data for 2010 is summarized for the state as a whole and by four farming regions.

“This publication shows the number of reports, the range in rates, most frequently reported rate and the average rate for each operation,” says Dwight Aakre, NDSU Extension Service farm management specialist. “Custom rates include charges for the equipment, tractor or power unit used, fuel, repairs and the operator.”

These rates are published as a guide in establishing rates for custom work, comparing ownership or leasing costs with custom work, and for settling accounts when two or more people exchange work.

“Custom rates represent a market-derived price,” Aakre says. “They reflect the supply of and demand for the services rendered, which include the use of the machine, power, fuel, repairs and the operator.”

The custom farm work rate survey is a cooperative effort of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s North Dakota Agricultural Statistics Service, NDSU Extension Service and North Dakota Agricultural Experiment Station. The survey is conducted every three years.

NDSU Agriculture Communication