SHELBINA, Mo. — Missouri has temporarily eased diesel restrictions for agricultural transportation, but prices reported Thursday at MFA in Shelbina showed just a 4-cent difference between clear and dyed fuel.
The Ranch’s Jason Mathis reported clear diesel at $6.19 per gallon and red-dyed diesel at $6.15 on Oct. 1. At those prices, buying 100 gallons of dyed diesel instead of clear would save $4. A 1,000 gallon purchase would produce a $40 difference, with either fuel costing more than $6,000.
The local price comparison comes one day after Gov. Mike Kehoe signed Executive Order 26-19. The measure declares a state of emergency and temporarily suspends Missouri’s dyed diesel restrictions for qualifying agricultural operations. It also increases the maximum weight for certain agricultural truck combinations. The order expires Oct. 30 unless extended.
The governor’s office described the action as a response to rising production expenses, including diesel and fertilizer. Those costs are adding pressure during harvest, when producers need fuel to run equipment and move commodities.
Red-dyed diesel normally is used in off-road equipment such as tractors and combines. Its tax treatment differs from highway diesel, but the prices reported in Shelbina demonstrate that access to dyed fuel does not necessarily mean a substantial discount at every location.
The 4-cent difference represents less than 1% of the reported clear diesel price. It is a comparison from one location on Oct. 1, rather than a statewide measure of the savings available under the order.
Missouri Farm Bureau President Garrett Hawkins welcomed the governor’s action. He said higher operating expenses are affecting farmers throughout their businesses and described the temporary flexibility as another way to manage harvest and transportation costs.
The governor’s announcement identifies farmers and haulers operating commercial vehicles licensed for farm use as beneficiaries of the diesel relief. Qualifying use must be agricultural. The measure is not a general authorization for personal driving.
Missouri Farm Bureau also cautioned that the state action does not waive federal dyed diesel restrictions. Its guidance says the relief applies to Missouri state highways and local roads and does not authorize use on interstate highways or U.S. highways subject to federal regulations.
The transportation provision offers a separate form of relief. Eligible six-axle combinations with at least 43 feet between their extreme axles may haul up to 90,000 pounds without a special permit or related permit fees.
Qualifying shipments include livestock, grain, timber and other seasonal agricultural products moving from fields to storage, markets or stockpiles, or from farm storage to market. The 90,000-pound ceiling is absolute. Operators cannot add the normal harvest weight allowance on top of it.
The heavier load allowance applies on Missouri state highways and local roads, excluding the federal interstate system. Posted bridge limits and axle safety requirements remain in effect.
For qualifying haulers, the added capacity could reduce the number of trips needed to move a crop. At the Shelbina fuel prices reported Thursday, however, switching from clear to dyed diesel alone would reduce a 100-gallon fuel bill from $619 to $615.
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