The American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) and Deere & Co., one of the world's largest manufacturers of farming equipment, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that will allow farmers to repair their own farm equipment.
David Gilmore, a senior vice president at Deere & Co., says the MoU will help farmers get equipment back in the field quickly following a breakdown.
He added that as a result of the partnership, farmers can repair their equipment and have access to the diagnostic tools and product guides so that they can find the problems and find solutions for them.
Previously, farmers did not have the freedom to repair their equipment where they wanted to, and were only allowed to use authorized parts and service facilities rather than cheaper independent repair options.
In an executive order that he signed in 2021, President Joe Biden had urged the Federal Trade Commission to draft a federal policy giving permission to customers to repair their own products, especially in the technology and farming sectors.
The MoU was announced at the 2023 American Farm Bureau Federation Convention in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
The MoU, which provides big relief for farmers and ranchers in the United States, comes after several years of discussions.
AFBF President Zippy Duvall said this was an issue that has been a priority for the organization for several years and has taken a lot of work to get to this point.
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