Agricultural price indices – United Kingdom: March 2026
Updated 28 May 2026
© Crown copyright 2026
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This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/agricultural-price-indices/agricultural-price-indices-united-kingdom-march-2026
The Agricultural Price Index (API) is an index of the price of agricultural outputs and inputs for the UK used to track change over time. More details on the index, including how it is produced, are in the Background section at the end of this document.
1. Key points at March 2026
Outputs
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The price index for agricultural outputs decreased by 5.3% in the 12 months to March 2026.
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There were 6 upward contributions to the 12-month inflation rate for agricultural outputs recorded for March 2026. The largest upward contribution was sheep and lambs (+0.7 percentage points).
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There were 8 downward contributions to the 12-month inflation rate for agricultural outputs recorded for March 2026. The largest downward contribution was milk (-5.1 percentage points) and pigs (-0.6 percentage points).
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The price index for agricultural outputs increased by 1.1% in the month to March 2026. In comparison, the index decreased by 3.0% in the month to February 2026.
Inputs
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The price index for agricultural inputs increased by 3.7% in the 12 months to March 2026.
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There were 9 upward contributions to the 12-month inflation rate for agricultural inputs recorded for March 2026. The largest upward contribution was plant protection products (+1.4 percentage points) and fertilisers and soil improvers (+1.3 percentage points).
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There were 3 downward contributions to the 12-month inflation rate for agricultural inputs recorded for March 2026. The largest downward contribution was compound feedingstuffs (-1.0 percentage points).
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The price index for agricultural inputs increased by 1.1% in the month to March 2026. In comparison, the index increased by 0.8% in the month to February 2026.
2. Summary charts for price indices
Figure 1 illustrates monthly price indices for agricultural outputs and inputs since January 2020. The price indices for both agricultural outputs and inputs began rising steeply around autumn 2021.
The index for input prices peaked in July 2022. The index for output prices peaked a few months after that, towards the beginning of 2023, and remained consistently below the input prices from mid-2021 until the end of 2023. Despite declines in the indices for outputs and inputs throughout the majority of 2023, both remained considerably higher than the 2020 baseline. Following recent increases in the outputs index, it has been higher than the inputs index since December 2023.
Figure 1: Monthly price indices for agricultural outputs and inputs to March 2026 (2020 = 100)
Figure 2 shows the annual average price indices for agricultural outputs and agricultural inputs since 2014. In 2026 (to date), the annual average price index decreased by 3.5% for agricultural outputs and increased by 3.3% for agricultural inputs. The year with the largest difference between agricultural outputs and agricultural inputs is 2022, with 2025 showing the second largest difference.
Figure 2: Annual average price indices for agricultural outputs and inputs to March 2026 (2020 = 100)
| Year | All agricultural outputs | All agricultural inputs |
|---|---|---|
| 2014 | 95.2 | 93.0 |
| 2015 | 86.4 | 89.6 |
| 2016 | 85.5 | 87.1 |
| 2017 | 93.6 | 91.8 |
| 2018 | 99.6 | 98.9 |
| 2019 | 96.2 | 100.4 |
| 2020 | 100.0 | 100.0 |
| 2021 | 110.0 | 112.6 |
| 2022 | 130.7 | 143.3 |
| 2023 | 132.3 | 135.4 |
| 2024 | 135.6 | 127.2 |
| 2025 | 139.6 | 127.5 |
| 2026 | 134.7 | 131.7 |
3. Contributions to change in the annual agricultural outputs and inputs inflation rate
Figure 3 shows the contributions to the 12-month inflation rate for agricultural outputs, which decreased by 5.3% between March 2025 and March 2026. Of the 16 output categories shown 6 reported higher prices. The largest upward contributions came from sheep and lambs, fresh vegetables and poultry. The largest downward contributions were from milk, pigs and wheat.
Figure 3: Contributions to change in the agricultural outputs index from March 2025 to March 2026 (2020 = 100)
| Category | Contribution (percentage points) |
|---|---|
| Sheep and lambs | 0.7 |
| Fresh vegetables | 0.4 |
| Poultry | 0.2 |
| Forage plants | 0.1 |
| Oilseed rape | 0.1 |
| Eggs | 0.1 |
| Sugar beet | 0.0 |
| Plants and flowers | 0.0 |
| Potatoes | 0.0 |
| Oats | -0.1 |
| Fresh fruit | -0.1 |
| Barley | -0.1 |
| Cattle and calves | -0.4 |
| Wheat | -0.5 |
| Pigs | -0.6 |
| Milk | -5.1 |
Notes:
- Small values may be shown as zero due to rounding.
Figure 4 shows the contributions to the 12-month inflation rate for agricultural inputs, which increased by 3.7% between March 2025 and March 2026. The largest upward contributions came from plant protection products, fertilisers and soil improvers and energy and lubricants. The largest downward contributions were from compound feedingstuffs.
Figure 4: Contributions to change in the agricultural inputs index from March 2025 to March 2026 (2020 = 100)
| Category | Contribution (percentage points) |
|---|---|
| Plant protection products | 1.4 |
| Fertilisers and soil improvers | 1.3 |
| Energy and lubricants | 0.8 |
| Other goods and services | 0.4 |
| Maintenance of materials | 0.4 |
| Buildings | 0.1 |
| Maintenance of buildings | 0.1 |
| Materials | 0.1 |
| Straight feedingstuffs | 0.1 |
| Veterinary services | 0.0 |
| Seeds | -0.1 |
| Compound feedingstuffs | -1.0 |
Notes:
- Small values may be shown as zero due to rounding.
4. Contributions to the annual agricultural outputs and inputs inflation rate
Figure 5 illustrates the varying contributions of different agricultural commodity categories to the rolling 12-month inflation rate for agricultural outputs from March 2025 to March 2026. The 12-month inflation rate for agricultural outputs has ranged from –6.2% to +7.5% during this period.
In the 12 months to March 2026 there was no positive contribution to the agricultural outputs inflation rate.
Livestock and animal products had the largest negative contribution, (-5.0 percentage points), followed by cereals (-0.7 percentage points).
Figure 5: Contributions to the rolling 12-month inflation rate in agricultural outputs, UK, March 2025 to March 2026 (percentage points)
Figure 6 depicts the contributions of various agricultural inputs to the rolling 12-month inflation rate for agricultural inputs from March 2025 to March 2026. The 12-month inflation rate for agricultural inputs ranged from -1.2% to +3.7% during this period.
In the 12 months to March 2026, Crop related costs made the largest positive contribution to the agricultural outputs inflation rate, (+2.6 percentage points) followed by other farm costs (+1.2 percentage points).
Livestock related costs had the largest negative contribution, (-1.0 percentage points).
Figure 6: Contributions to the rolling 12-month inflation rate in agricultural inputs, UK, March 2025 to March 2026 (percentage points)
More information on the contents of each group can be found in the ‘About these statistics’ section below.
5. Summary table of price indices
Table 1 displays the price indices for agricultural outputs in March 2025, February 2026, and March 2026, with the base year being 2020 = 100. Additionally, it provides the 12-month (year-over-year) and 1-month (month-over-month) inflation rates for agricultural outputs. The agricultural outputs are split by the two main categories: crop products, and animals and animal products.
Table 1: Agricultural Output Price Indices and Inflation Rates (March 2025 - March 2026)
| Category | March 2025 | February 2026 | March 2026 | 12-month rate (%) | 1-month rate (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All agricultural outputs | 141.8 | 132.8 | 134.2 | -5.3 | 1.1 |
| Crop products | 118.9 | 116.2 | 117.7 | -1.0 | 1.3 |
| Cereals | 111.2 | 102.8 | 104.4 | -6.1 | 1.6 |
| Wheat | 108.4 | 99.8 | 102.1 | -5.9 | 2.3 |
| Barley | 120.5 | 115.1 | 115.1 | -4.5 | -0.0 |
| Oats | 115.4 | 96.2 | 96.5 | -16.4 | 0.3 |
| Potatoes | 163.8 | 158.0 | 162.5 | -0.8 | 2.8 |
| Oilseed rape | 125.1 | 127.0 | 130.6 | 4.4 | 2.9 |
| Sugar beet | 139.3 | 139.3 | 139.3 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Forage plants | 116.2 | 155.3 | 163.7 | 40.9 | 5.5 |
| Fresh vegetables | 115.5 | 121.6 | 125.9 | 9.0 | 3.6 |
| Fresh fruit | 108.5 | 99.2 | 101.2 | -6.7 | 2.1 |
| Animals and animal products | 155.1 | 142.1 | 143.8 | -7.3 | 1.2 |
| Animals | 152.6 | 148.2 | 152.7 | 0.1 | 3.1 |
| Cattle and calves | 200.9 | 197.8 | 197.1 | -1.9 | -0.4 |
| Pigs | 126.4 | 115.4 | 113.3 | -10.4 | -1.9 |
| Sheep and lambs | 157.4 | 154.2 | 175.0 | 11.1 | 13.5 |
| Poultry | 104.1 | 102.1 | 107.0 | 2.8 | 4.9 |
| Animal products | 158.9 | 132.8 | 130.3 | -18.0 | -1.9 |
| Milk | 156.9 | 125.6 | 122.6 | -21.9 | -2.4 |
| Eggs | 176.6 | 180.4 | 180.4 | 2.1 | 0.0 |
Notes:
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Sugar beet prices are provided annually and with a delay of upwards of a year. Lack of change in this index, monthly or yearly, is not necessarily representative of price changes within this market.
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Egg prices are provided quarterly and with a delay of several months. Lack of change in this index, monthly or yearly, is not necessarily representative of the price changes within this market.
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This table presents several summary categories so values should not be summed to prevent double counting.
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Small values may be shown as zero due to rounding.
Table 2 displays the price indices for agricultural inputs in March 2025, February 2026, and March 2026, with the base year being 2020 = 100. Additionally, it provides the 12-month (year-over-year) and 1-month (month-over-month) inflation rates for agricultural inputs. The agricultural inputs are split by the two main categories: goods and services currently consumed in agriculture, and goods and services contributing to investment.
Table 2: Agricultural Input Price Indices and Inflation Rates (March 2025 - March 2026)
| Category | March 2025 | February 2026 | March 2026 | 12-month rate (%) | 1-month rate (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All agricultural inputs | 128.3 | 131.6 | 133.0 | 3.7 | 1.1 |
| Goods and services currently consumed in agriculture | 127.7 | 131.5 | 133.1 | 4.2 | 1.2 |
| Seeds | 108.2 | 105.4 | 105.7 | -2.3 | 0.3 |
| Energy and lubricants | 146.0 | 144.9 | 160.7 | 10.0 | 10.9 |
| Fertilisers and soil improvers | 169.6 | 186.3 | 191.2 | 12.8 | 2.7 |
| Plant protection products | 101.4 | 135.0 | 135.0 | 33.1 | 0.0 |
| Veterinary services | 119.3 | 118.0 | 118.5 | -0.7 | 0.4 |
| Animal feedingstuffs | 122.1 | 117.4 | 118.4 | -3.0 | 0.9 |
| Straight feedingstuffs | 108.2 | 106.3 | 109.3 | 1.0 | 2.8 |
| Compound feedingstuffs | 126.7 | 121.5 | 121.5 | -4.1 | 0.0 |
| Maintenance of materials | 131.0 | 137.6 | 139.7 | 6.6 | 1.5 |
| Maintenance of buildings | 137.8 | 140.1 | 141.3 | 2.6 | 0.9 |
| Other goods and services | 120.1 | 124.3 | 124.5 | 3.7 | 0.2 |
| Goods and services contributing to investment | 131.2 | 132.1 | 132.7 | 1.2 | 0.5 |
| Materials | 126.7 | 127.4 | 127.5 | 0.7 | 0.1 |
| Buildings | 140.8 | 142.2 | 144.0 | 2.3 | 1.2 |
Notes:
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Price data are provisional for most agricultural inputs.
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This table presents several summary categories so values should not be summed to prevent double counting.
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Small values may be shown as zero due to rounding.
What you need to know about this release
Accredited official statistics are called National Statistics in the Statistics and Registration Service Act 2007. An explanation can be found on the Office for Statistics Regulation website. Our statistical practice is regulated by the Office for Statistics Regulation (OSR). OSR sets the standards of trustworthiness, quality and value in the Code of Practice for Statistics that all producers of official statistics should adhere to.
These accredited official statistics were independently reviewed by the Office for Statistics Regulation in 2014. They comply with the standards of trustworthiness, quality and value in the Code of Practice for Statistics and should be labelled ‘accredited official statistics’. You are welcome to contact us directly with any comments about how we meet these standards (see contact details below). Alternatively, you can contact OSR by emailing regulation@statistics.gov.uk or via the OSR website.
Since the latest review by the Office for Statistics Regulation, we have continued to comply with the Code of Practice for Statistics, and have made the following improvements:
- updated the range of prices collected based on availability and quality
- improved weighting methodology.
About these statistics
Background
The output series reflects the price farmers receive for their products, also referred to as farm gate price. Information is collected for all major crops (for example wheat and potatoes) and livestock and animal products (for example sheep, milk and eggs).
The input series reflects the price farmers pay for goods and services. The series is in two groups: goods and services currently consumed; and goods and services contributing to investment. Goods and services currently consumed refer to items that are used up in the production process, for example fertiliser or seed. Goods and services contributing to investment relate to items that are required but not consumed in the production process, such as tractors or buildings.
Data uses
Farmers use the Agricultural Price Index to help set prices for their outputs and monitor the prices paid for inputs. Analysts in Government, industry specialists, consultants, economists and academics use the data to assess the impact that price changes have on industry and consumers.
The Office of National Statistics (ONS) uses API data in the production of the Producer Price Index (PPI), which is one of the key measures of inflation.
Revisions
In the May 2026 statistical release, the input price index has been revised from January 2014 to August 2025 for the following items:
Fungicides
Insecticides
Herbicides
Other plant protection products
Please note that the pesticide weighting methodology is currently under review. Consequently, pesticide data may be subject to larger-than-usual revisions in future publications.
Methodology
Price data
Defra collect prices from a wide variety of sources to produce the monthly API. This includes data from our own surveys, information from the Horticultural Marketing Inspectorate (HMI), Agricultural and Horticultural Development Board (AHDB), and the ONS. For some items we only receive quarterly or annual data, for example, electricity prices. When no new data are available estimates are made based on previous values until new data becomes available. When new data become available, historical revisions are made and a note is added in the ‘What you need to know about this release’ section.
In order to maintain continuity in these statistics, the Agricultural Price Index is produced in accordance with the European Statistical System.
Weights
Each price point is assigned a weight which reflects its contribution to the overall index. The weights for each item represent their annual monetary value from the Agricultural Accounts. For example, if the annual value of animal feed purchased is three times more than fertilisers then the annual weight for animal feed will also be three times more than for fertiliser. Where monthly data is available, monthly and quarterly weights for outputs reflect the pattern of sales volumes across the year. For example, if the volume of sales for apples in October is double that in June, then the October weight for apples is double the weight for June. Monthly and quarterly weights for input items do not vary within the year. The weights are recalculated every five years to reflect more recent data. The March 2023 index was the first to be produced using weights based on 2020, replacing weights based on 2015.
Contributions
It is often of interest to estimate the effect of a group or item on the change in the agricultural outputs or inputs index. The contribution of a group or item to a change in the all items index over a given period of time is defined as the change that would have occurred in the all items index if that component had undergone its observed change but all other component indices had remained frozen at their values at the start of the period (and all weights are kept the same). The effect of each component depends on both the size of its change and its weight.
The formula for calculating the contributions to changes in the agricultural inputs inflation rate differs from the agricultural outputs inflation rate, reflecting the fact that monthly and quarterly weights for input items do not vary within the year. The formulas for calculating contributions to changes in all items index with seasonal and non-seasonal weights can be found in the 2007 Technical Manual on Consumer Price Indices published by the ONS.
The categories shown in Figure 5 and 6 were created by aggregating the following categories:
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Fresh fruit, fresh vegetables, flowers and plants, and potatoes into horticulture.
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Industrial crops, forage plants and other crop products into industrial and other crops.
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Fertilisers and soil improvers, plant protection products and seeds into crop-related costs.
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Animal feedingstuffs and veterinary services into livestock-related costs.
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Maintenance of buildings, maintenance of materials, other goods and services, buildings and materials into other farm costs.
User engagement
As part of our ongoing commitment to compliance with the Code of Practice for Official Statistics we wish to strengthen our engagement with users of Agricultural Price Indices (API) data and better understand how data from this release is used. Consequently, we invite you to register as a user of the API data, so that we can retain your details and inform you of any new releases and provide you with the opportunity to take part in any user engagement activities that we may run.
Contact details
Responsible statistician: Mark Kirby
Email: prices@defra.gov.uk
Media enquiries: (0)330 041 6560; newsdesk@defra.gov.uk
Department for Environment, Food And Rural Affairs
3rd floor, Mallard House, 1-2 Peasholme Green
York
YO1 7PX