Agricultural & Forestry Machinery in the UK - Market Size, Industry Analysis, Trends and Forecasts (2025-2029)

Agricultural & Forestry Machinery in the UK industry analysis

Agricultural income, government grants for R&D, demand from supermarkets, logging activity and the world price of steel are key drivers of the performance of the agricultural and forestry machinery manufacturing industry. Over the five years through 2024, industry revenue is forecast to slump at a compound annual rate of 2.9% to reach €77 billion, alongside a contraction of 1.6% in 2024. COVID-19 severely disrupted the manufacturing industry’s complex supply chains and crucial downstream markets, constraining capacity and curbing order volumes. Widespread pessimism about their financial prospects in 2024 is driving key downstream buyers to tighten their purse strings and lower big-ticket purchases. Despite this, demand for spare parts and maintenance remains robust during economic headwinds.

Trends and Insights

• Logging activity resists afforestation strategies. The level of logging in Europe has not been adversely affected by afforestation and reforestation initiatives, sustaining demand for forestry machinery.
• Tariffs will sharply reduce European agricultural and forestry machinery exports to the US. The new 10% US base tariff will make European machinery more costly for US buyers. EU products will also become less competitive as the EU 20% tariff comes into action in July 2025, likely leading to a significant drop in export volumes as US buyers turn to domestic or alternative suppliers. This shift threatens the European trade surplus in the sector and could disrupt established transatlantic trade flows.
• A handful of companies dominate the top end. Given the high-tech specifications of tractors and other large agricultural machinery, only a select few companies have the resources and skills to manufacture the top-end products.