Funding for self-propelled forage harvesters and their grass and maize headers, aimed at silage contractors and the larger dairy and AD operations that run their own.
Whole-of-market — 60+ lenders searched, including
Yes, although a forager is underwritten as a contracting business asset rather than as farm machinery. Self-propelled foragers are high value, cover enormous acreage in a short window and are bought almost entirely by contractors, so funders assess the customer book as much as the machine. Hire purchase is the usual route. Used is fundable, particularly machines that have come through a main dealer with a refurbished cracker or drum. The thing that catches people out is the headers: a pick-up header and a maize header are separate high-value items and both need to be on the invoice if you want them funded.
Used kit: Yes, with drum, cracker and shearbar condition mattering more than age
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Business asset finance is quoted on a flat rate, so that is what this shows — with the equivalent APR underneath, because the two are not the same number. A quick guide only; your actual rate depends on the asset, term, deposit and lender.
Representative example: on Hire Purchase, borrowing £25,000 over 48 months at a 6.0% flat rate (equivalent to 11.5% APR representative), you would repay around £646 a month; total amount repayable approximately £31,000, of which £6,000 is the cost of finance. This calculator is for illustration only — it is not a quote or an offer of finance, and the rate and repayments you are offered will depend on the asset, term, deposit and your circumstances. CW Asset Finance is a credit broker, not a lender, and may receive a commission from the lender that funds your agreement. All finance is subject to status, affordability and lender approval. CW Asset Finance is an Appointed Representative of Rural Finance Limited, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FRN 630701).
This is the asset where the lender looks hardest at the operator. The machine does very high engine hours in a few weeks, wear parts are expensive, and the secondhand market is small because only contractors buy them. Resale is realistic but slow, and a funder knows a recovered forager is difficult to place outside the spring. They will want to see the customer list, repeat contracts, how many acres the machine is committed to, and whether the business is diversified across grass, maize and wholecrop rather than depending on one season. Repayments are commonly weighted towards the months when silage invoices are actually paid. General plant funders rarely engage here, so specialist agricultural and contractor funders are where this belongs.
Examples of the machines we are asked to fund. This is not an exhaustive list — if what you are buying is not here, it does not mean we cannot fund it. Your supplier quote is what the agreement is written against.
| Machine | What it is |
|---|---|
| Claas Jaguar 860 | Mid-power self-propelled forage harvester |
| Claas Jaguar 960 | High-output forager for contract silage |
| Claas Orbis 750 | Wide maize header for forage harvesters |
| Krone BiG X 580 | Self-propelled harvester for grass and maize |
| Krone BiG X 780 | Large forage harvester for contracting fleets |
| John Deere 8600 | Self-propelled forager with kernel processor |
| John Deere 9700 | Top-power forage harvester for maize |
| New Holland FR550 Forage Cruiser | Self-propelled harvester for silage work |
| Fendt Katana 650 | Self-propelled forager for grass and wholecrop |
| Kemper 460 plus | Row-independent maize header |
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Silage contractors running a full harvest team through grass and maize, large dairy units that have decided the weather risk of waiting for a contractor is worse than the capital cost, and anaerobic digestion operators cutting their own feedstock. The trigger is usually a season where the machine could not keep up with the customer list, or a contractor taking on an AD plant contract that needs guaranteed capacity in a fixed window.
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We publish the deals we arrange, with no client named and no rate quoted. See what we have funded in agriculture.
Bought on hire purchase, business plant and machinery normally qualifies for capital allowances on the full cost even though you pay for it monthly, which is a large part of why hire purchase is the common structure. On a finance lease you generally set the rentals against profit instead. The rules change between budgets and your position depends on how you trade, so treat this as the direction of travel and get your accountant to confirm the detail before you commit.
It is harder but not impossible. A funder will want signed customer commitments or a clear book of work, relevant experience in the trade, and usually a contribution towards the machine. Starting on a used machine at a lower value is generally an easier first step than going straight to a new high-output forager.
Yes, if they are invoiced with the machine. Headers are a serious proportion of the total cost on a forager, so leaving them out of the agreement usually means finding a large amount of cash separately. Get the dealer to invoice the machine and both headers together.
Usually yes with a specialist funder. Profiles can be weighted so the heavy payments fall when first cut and maize invoices are settled, with lighter payments through the winter. You need to be realistic about the winter months, because a profile that assumes zero income all winter still has to be affordable when a customer pays late.
They expect them. A forager accumulates hours faster than anything else on a farm, so hours alone do not frighten a funder. What they focus on is whether the chopping cylinder, shearbar, cracker rolls and driveline have been maintained and replaced on schedule, and whether the machine has been dealer-serviced.
Not separate finance, but usually separate agreements. A forage team is often funded as several parallel agreements covering the harvester, the tractors and the silage trailers, arranged together so the total repayment is planned as one figure. We would look at the whole team rather than one machine in isolation.
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Not an offer of finance. All finance is subject to status, affordability and lender approval.
Tell us what you’re looking to fund and Conor will come back to you personally — usually the same day.
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