USA: FTC and USDA Open Joint Inquiry into Farm Equipment Market Practices
The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Department of Agriculture (USDA) have opened a joint public inquiry into potential anticompetitive conduct in agricultural equipment manufacturing and distribution, the agencies announced on 7 October 2026. Public comments are invited through 7 December 2026.
The inquiry asks farmers, dealers, independent repair shops and other stakeholders about barriers to acquiring agricultural equipment and the services required to run it — from restrictive dealer agreements and parts pricing to repair restrictions, Farms.com reported.
For potato growers, the questions are familiar. Harvesters, planters and storage systems are among the most capital-intensive items on a farm, and dealer consolidation has reduced choice in many rural areas. The right-to-repair debate also runs directly through the potato sector: in July, Deere & Co. settled with the FTC and five states, agreeing to give farmers and independent shops the same diagnostic and repair resources as authorised dealers for ten years, and paying US$1 million toward state legal fees, Yahoo Finance reported. A separate US$99 million class-action settlement with farmers followed in April.
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The inquiry lands at a weak point in the equipment cycle: Deere’s Q3 2026 report cited Production & Precision Ag sales down roughly 10% and large-ag industry sales down 15–20% in North America, with management calling fiscal 2026 the bottom of the ag cycle.
The announcement moved equipment stocks sharply: Deere fell 3.8%, AGCO dropped 6.2%, CNH Industrial 6.1% and Caterpillar 5.9% on the day of the announcement, according to Yahoo Finance. The inquiry is a request for information rather than an enforcement action, and any regulatory outcome would not come before early 2027.
The July order against Deere also bars dealers from retaliating against owners or independent shops that carry out their own repairs — a clause watched closely across the industry, since dealer networks carry most warranty and software work.
The agencies say farmer input is central to the exercise. Comments can be submitted via Regulations.gov until 7 December 2026, 11:59 p.m., and will be used to assess competition across manufacturing, distribution, sales and service of agricultural machinery.
Sources: FTC press release, Yahoo Finance, Farms.com.
