RISING DIESEL PRICES SPARK A SHIFT IN FOREST & GARDEN SECTOR STRATEGY

PRESS RELEASE: Husqvarna  

In the forestry, landscaping and garden sector, diesel does not just power machines. It moves teams, transports equipment, delivers stock, keeps contractors on site and service networks running.

In South Africa, as in much of the world, fuel prices have reached unprecedented levels following disruptions to global oil supply. Diesel is no longer just a secondary cost. It is now actively shaping decisions across the sector.

According to Pieter Smuts, Managing Director of Husqvarna South Africa and Regional Manager for Africa, the impact is being felt across the full value chain. "Fuel is one of those costs that touches almost every part of the industry," he says. "It affects contractors, fleet operators, dealers, service teams, landscapers, municipalities and end users. When diesel prices rise so sharply, especially to this all-time high, it not only increases the cost of getting from A to B, but also changes how people think about equipment, maintenance, productivity and long-term value."

Smuts notes that the greatest pressure is being felt in diesel-intensive parts of the market, particularly forestry and commercial landscaping, although residential garden consumers are also feeling the effect due to tighter household budgets.

Forestry operations rely heavily on diesel across harvesting equipment, skidders, forwarders, transport fleets and support vehicles, making fuel one of the biggest variable operating costs after labour. "Another key challenge is that fuel costs can rise abruptly, but contract rates do not always move at the same speed," Smuts points out. "This creates pressure on margins and cash flow, especially for operators working on fixed-rate agreements or delayed adjustment cycles."

The consequence is a pattern where businesses shift into asset-preservation mode,  delaying equipment replacement, and relying more heavily on repairs and servicing to extend the life of existing machines. This makes uptime, servicing and parts availability critical to sustaining operations.

At the same time, a broader trend is emerging, away from simple upfront-price thinking. “For years, many equipment decisions were mainly driven by purchase price,” explains Smuts. “That is changing, with buyers now asking tougher questions about fuel burn, maintenance costs, downtime and reliability, and taking a closer look at total cost of ownership.

He adds that when operating costs rise, the cheapest machine on day one is not always the cheapest over its working life. Customers are becoming more focused on what a machine costs to run, not just what it costs to buy. This shift in thinking is also accelerating interest in battery-powered handheld equipment in landscaping and garden applications, where the business case for alternative power options is becoming increasingly compelling.

Urban landscaping businesses, estates and municipalities are particularly exposed because many run multiple teams, vehicles and trailers, with fuel underpinning routes, equipment, service calls and logistics. And when prices rise, route planning, fleet use and equipment choice all come under review.

Dealers are also affected. Higher fuel prices increase the cost of inbound freight, technician travel, branch deliveries, spare parts logistics and service operations, placing strain on pricing and margins across the channel.

"It becomes a balancing act," says Smuts, “with dealers needing to protect service quality and availability while customers manage rising costs. This makes strong after-sales support, efficient service turnaround and reliable parts supply not just important, but essential.”

He believes the latest fuel pressure is not creating a new trend as much as accelerating one already underway. Across the forest and garden sector, there is an increasing emphasis on equipment and support systems that deliver better efficiency, stronger uptime, lower lifecycle costs and more predictable operating performance, with battery-powered solutions increasingly part of that mix.

Smuts expects these prevailing market factors to continue to influence buying behaviour over the next 6 to 12 months. “We are seeing a sector that is thinking harder about every rand spent, with a clearer focus on long-term value and operating smarter.”  

He concludes: “The market is becoming more value-driven, not in the sense of the lowest price, but in terms of overall operational performance. And, in tougher conditions, that is what defines sustainable performance.”

Press Release on Behalf of:

Pieter Smuts

Managing Director: Husqvarna South Africa and Regional Manager: Africa

Pieter Smuts, Managing Director of Husqvarna South Africa and Regional Manager for Africa

About Husqvarna  

Husqvarna, a brand within Husqvarna Group, is a market leader in innovative and high-quality products and services for shaping green spaces in parks, forests and gardens. Since 1689, Swedish-born Husqvarna has a strong focus on research and development and is a pioneer in robotic lawn mowers and chainsaws. Today, the product portfolio consists of the next generation of robotic mowers, riders, chainsaws and trimmers for professional as well as private use. Sustainable value creation, product innovation and digitalisation remain important for the journey ahead. Husqvarna products are sold in more than 100 countries. Husqvarna Group, which also includes Gardena and Husqvarna Construction, has 13,300 employees in 40 countries around the world and net sales in 2024 amounted to SEK 48,4 billion. Husqvarna Group is listed on Nasdaq Stockholm.