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Big Savings with Z Diesel Discount
Farmlands has teamed up with Z Energy to deliver huge savings on diesel, but some Farmlands shareholders still aren’t aware of the offer.
With the price of almost every input rising steeply over the past couple of years, farmers and growers around the country are feeling the pinch. However, one small tweak could save Farmlands shareholders thousands of dollars per year. All they have to do is use their Farmlands Card when buying diesel at a Z or Caltex truck stop and they will get a saving of 19c per litre. And with over 125 of these truck stops nationwide, most shareholders will have one conveniently close by.
Iain O’Rourke, Commercial Manager – Card for Farmlands, says Farmlands has a long-standing offer of 12c off per litre at Z stations (petrol and diesel), but it also has the even bigger offer of 19c/L for diesel at Z and Caltex truck stops. Further, the 19c/L discount is off the Z National List Price, which is often already much lower than the price at pump. To illustrate: Farmlands shareholders using diesel at Truck Stops have paid an average price of just $1.87 per litre of diesel over the last 12 months; a price that is highly competitive on any given day let alone an entire year.* Note this average includes the now ended Auckland Regional Fuel Tax, without this the average would be even lower.
Iain says Farmlands shareholders can easily find their nearest Z or Caltex Truck Stop using the Farmlands Card app.
A Short Retirement
Canterbury-based dairy farmers Michael and Sue Thomas have saved over $2,000 on truck stop purchases at Z in the past 12 months by using their Farmlands Card. “We used to be at Burnham until 12 months ago,” Michael says. “We had 1,000 cows on 280 hectares and we sold that. The idea was to retire, so we bought 10 acres in Prebbleton. I did that for a week and then we bought another dairy farm.”
Asked about what must surely be a world record for the shortest retirement, Michael has a simple explanation: “If you hang around the house, you only get a job, so you’re better off doing your own thing.” The dairy block at nearby McQueens Valley is downsized compared to their previous farm, milking 200 cows. It is run by their long-time farm manager, along with one of Michael and Sue’s five daughters. “I pop around occasionally, but I’m more like the emergency service now,” Michael jokes. They have been making good use of the Farmlands/Z Energy truck stop offer since buying the new farm. Michael says using the truck stops is not only good for their bottom line, but also very convenient.
“We used to have our own tank and get fuel delivered, but since we moved farms, we've been using the truck stop. We fill all our vehicles up at the truck stop too.” Their vehicle fleet includes a boat, which Michael likes to take out for fishing from their bach at Okiwi Bay in the Marlborough Sounds. He also enjoys a spot of golf, and catching up with their six children (including five daughters).
Regular Visitors
Evan Paxton of Riverview Farms is a regular visitor to his local Z truck stop outside Dargaville. His family runs one of New Zealand’s largest kumara growing operations, producing 3,000- 3,500 bins per year on 60ha, with the remainder of their 200ha used for fattening lambs and cattle. Evan says they have been using the truck stop since it opened, as it is only a short drive away from their farms. “It used to be chaos going into town and fuelling up there.” With over 28,000L of diesel purchased in the past 12 months, they have saved more than $5,000 just by using their Farmlands Card.
They use the truck stop for a variety of vehicles, including tractors, utes and even trucks (they cart their own kumara to the packhouse). Evan says they use the most diesel during planting season. “We start in early October – although we’re working the ground before then – and we’re planting right through until Christmas. We start our harvest early-to-mid February, but the bulk of it starts on March 1st. We have a diesel trailer tank and we just grab it as we need it, but during planting, it's pretty much getting filled up every day.” They also have Farmlands Cards for their permanent staff, to ensure they are making full use of the Z truck stop discount. “We have three staff that all have a Card, and so then they can obviously fill the diesel trailer up or whatever needs to be done. They've all got company utes as well.”
Instant Fuel
Southland dairy farmers Doug and Jo Dodds have saved almost $2,500 on diesel purchases by using their Farmlands Card at Z and Caltex truck stops in the past 12 months. Doug says he loves getting the 19c/L discount, but he also enjoys the convenience of it. He says they were previously getting diesel delivered to their farm by another provider, but they prefer being able to get their diesel immediately whenever they need it. “If we were busy using a lot of diesel, we didn’t want to have to wait for it to be delivered to our farm. Because we are very close to a truck stop, it's no hassle just to go; you just pop down the road rather than waiting a week for someone to deliver,” he says. “We have some runoff blocks too, so if we're doing a lot of work on one of them, we can just take our ute there and refuel tractors and things. It's very convenient and you're not messing around with drums of diesel and spilling it.”
Doug and his family milk around 530 cows on a dairy platform of roughly 200ha. His family has a long history on the property, with his grandfather purchasing the original farm of 120ha over a century ago in 1911. The biggest challenge on the farm in 2024 is rising costs, and the Farmlands/Z Energy offer has helped them save thousands while prices have gone up elsewhere. “This season we have just moved into a new rotary cow shed and shut the two existing cow sheds down. All the costs of building and plant and everything just kept going up and up and up, so it’s great to be able to save on something important like fuel.”
