Rail Surcharges Crush Farmers | Yakima News

Yakima News Today | 2 Min News | The Daily News Now! · Sep 15, 2026 · 1m

Railroad fuel surcharges on grain shipments have skyrocketed—jumping from 17 cents to nearly 48 cents per mile—now eating up 11% of shipping costs for corn and soybeans, up from just 5% a year ago. With harvests underway and oil prices climbing, farmers are hit hardest, especially those reliant on rail for transport. Many report drastically lower “basis” payments, with one Kansas farmer getting 70 cents less per bushel than market prices. Railroads justify the hikes as fuel cost coverage, but critics say they’re slow to cut back and use the surcharges to keep rates high. Big agribusinesses…