Canadian Combine Sales Fell 38%. One Saskatchewan Diesel Bill Rose $75,000.

CBC News reported on October 27 that farmers in Saskatchewan are delaying equipment purchases as fuel and borrowing costs stay high. The Association of Equipment Manufacturers said Canadian tractor sales in September 2026 were down roughly 15% from a year earlier and combine sales were down nearly 38%. Those are national Canadian figures, not a Saskatchewan-only census. Devon Walker, a board member of the Agricultural Producers Association of Saskatchewan, said his 3,600-acre farm burned 75,000 litres of diesel at harvest and that the higher price cost an extra $75,000 this year. Farm Credit Canada economist Graeme Crosbie estimated an extra $15 to $20 an acre, or about $70,000 to $100,000 on a 5,000-acre example. Those fuel figures are estimates and one farm's experience, not a provincial pump-price table. Crosbie said tighter margins had not yet put the industry as a whole into losses.

Does the 38% drop mean Saskatchewan farms bought 38% less machinery? No. That figure is Canadian combine sales compared with September 2025. The local evidence is farmers' reported diesel costs and a decision to keep machines longer.