I love machinery and tech. It is why I do this job. Farm machinery has always interested me, and I have always been supportive of new technologies because I fundamentally believe that, in the long run, they provide benefits to all of us.
That does not mean I am not cynical about some systems and their costs. One of these is AdBlue. Yes, in conjunction with DPF it cleans particulates and harmful nitrogen oxide from exhaust emissions, which are particularly damaging to respiratory health, and yes, the introduction of exhaust treatment systems has saved many lives, particularly in urban environments where more people are exposed to engine exhaust fumes.
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But the additional cost this brings to end users is not insignificant. A friend of mine owns a 2019 combine which, during the start of the 2026 barley harvest, got very electronically upset due to a failed AdBlue sensor costing £700, plus labour, to replace.
To temporarily keep the show on the road, the fault was remotely turned off until a sensor could be sourced.
He asked me if he could permanently turn off the AdBlue system to prevent the issue happening again and put a bit more metaphorical margin into his crops.
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Yes, you can. Just not legally, unless you are going to export the combine to one of the many overseas markets which do not use exhaust treatment, and farm like it is 1972 with a straight pipe from the manifold.
And this is where the rub comes. It is not exhaust treatment systems; they are fundamentally a good idea in the long run. It is the reality that, without subsidies, it is another, admittedly small, disadvantage applied to British farming. He cannot legally operate his combine to cut his barley without a working, cost-adding AdBlue and DPF system.
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But the buyer of his barley can also buy crop from overseas from Mr Straight Six, Straight Pipe without any of those costs being applied to him.
Home-produced crops are at yet another cost disadvantage due to a lack of coherent policy and a lack of any market protection to sustain the standards we believe are important.
Progress for the betterment of everyone is important, but it should be accompanied by economic fairness.
