2025 ICB: irrigation winter crops in the Eastern Free State

WINTER CROPS  //  2025 Income and Cost Budgets

Eastern Free State – irrigation

Income and cost budgets for wheat for Eastern Free State
Area Eastern Free State
Crop Wheat
Production system Irrigation

1. Income

Yield: deterministic Ton/ha 6.50
SAFEX simulated price / producer price: 2025 R/ton 6 327
Total deductions R/ton 789
– Transport differential R/ton 356
– Grade differential R/ton 336
– Marketing, handling and statutory levies R/ton 96
Price premiums / Canola back-payment R/ton
Net farm gate price R/ton 5 539
Gross income R/ha R36 003

2. Variable expenditures

Contracting R/ha 1 300
Crop insurance R/ha 2 880
Fertilizer R/ha 7 355
Lime R/ha 563
Seed R/ha 2 805
Fuel R/ha 1 105
Herbicide R/ha 327
Insecticide R/ha 523
Fungicides R/ha
Marketing costs R/ha 136
Repairs and maintenance R/ha 1 778
Casual labour R/ha
Irrigation: Water R/ha 762
Irrigation: Electricity R/ha 3 238
Aerial spray R/ha
Other expenditure: Scheduling / Irrigation Equipment R&M R/ha 32
Total variable expenditure R/ha R22 804
Total variable expenditure R/ton R3 508
3.1 Gross margin R/ha R13 198
3.2 Gross margin R/ton R2 031
Break-even yield T/ha 4.12
Break-even price R/ton R3 508
Source: VKB, GSA and BFAP, updated April 2025.
Gross margin comparison – Baseline: Free State
Graph showing baseline gross margin comparison for Free State irrigation

Gross margin per hectare: Free State

Wheat sensitivity analysis
Yield (t/ha)
Producers price 5.75 6.00 6.25 6.50 6.75 7.00 7.25
R4 539 3 294 4 429 5 564 6 698 7 833 8 968 10 102
R4 789 4 732 5 929 7 126 8 323 9 520 10 718 11 915
R5 039 6 169 7 429 8 689 9 948 11 208 12 468 13 727
R5 289 7 607 8 929 10 251 11 573 12 895 14 218 15 540
R5 539 9 044 10 429 11 814 13 198 14 583 15 968 17 352
R5 789 10 482 11 929 13 376 14 823 16 270 17 718 19 165
R6 039 11 919 13 429 14 939 16 448 17 958 19 468 20 977
R6 289 13 357 14 929 16 501 18 073 19 645 21 218 22 790
R6 539 14 794 16 429 18 064 19 698 21 333 22 968 24 602

Notes

  • Please refer to Methodology, Approach and Definitions for in-depth interpretation of enterprise budgets.
  • The canola back-payment assumes 10% of contracted price.
  • The cost items reflect the input allocation based on the target yield for the respective crops.
  • Although some expenditure items are zero, it is reflected in the budgets to allow for individual inclusion.
  • The cost of fuel includes pre-harvest and harvesting costs with the assumption that own machinery is used.
  • The costs for wheat, barley and oats seeds reflect a combination of own and purchased seed.
  • It is important to note that overhead costs are not included and should be accounted for. Overhead costs such as interest on production loans, labour, management and administration will vary to a large extent from producer to producer. Producers will therefore have to deduct the farm business' overhead cost from the gross margins as stipulated in the tables and figures to calculate the net income per crop.
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