The record high cost of diesel fuel has Tamaqua area farmer Megan Gimbel worried on a multitude of levels.

“How are we supposed to feed our animals, clean manure, plant seeds, fertilize, cut hay, till, rake, bale and haul it to storage?” asked Gimbel of Gimbel Farms LLC on Ben Titus Road.

She noted that a gallon of diesel at an area station teetered at $6.69 per gallon.

“It’s just exploded,” Gimbel said of the price.

Lynn Heckman of Heckman Orchards in Effort is also feeling the painful pinch.

“It looks like it jumped a dollar in the last week,” Heckman said.

According to the U.S. Energy Information Association, diesel prices along the East Coast are creeping higher week by week. The most recent data from May 2 puts the average cost at $5.70 per gallon, or about 75% higher than it was a year ago. Bloomburg reported that East Coast inventories of diesel plummeted to the lowest level since 1996. The shortage is to blame for sending wholesale - and retail - diesel prices to their all-time highs.

“I feel like it is going to get worse,” Gimbel admitted.

Gimbel and Heckman fuel their tractors and other farm equipment with diesel. It’s the same for most farmers; the Diesel Technology Forum reports that those engines power the two-thirds of the agricultural equipment used to cultivate and harvest crops, and to transport them to markets or for processing.

Gimbel and her husband, Aaron Gimbel, are third-generation family farmers and have had charge of the farm since 2012.

They raise grass-fed cattle and grow hay on 100 acres.

Heckman farms a total of 250 acres, including 35 acres of orchards where apples, peaches, plums, pears and cherries grow. The remainder of the land is reserved for vegetables such as tomatoes, peppers, sweet corn and beans.

There’s really no way to save on fuel costs, the farmers said.

“You need to till the soil, you need to plant the crops, you need to spray them when needed,” Heckman explained. “There’s a lot of work in the orchards, and it needs to be mowed.”

Getting off the farm means using diesel, too, Gimbel said.

“How are we supposed to drive to the mill for minerals or pig feed? How are we supposed to deliver cows to the butcher and pick up meat from the butcher?” she asked. “Not only the price of diesel, but the cost of fertilizer and everything else has exploded - and we are feeling it.”

Heckman said fertilizer has doubled in price since last year. He pays about $1,000 for a ton.

“When fuel goes up, fertilizer generally goes up. But this is a drastic jump,” Heckman said. “For most farmers, the fuel is a big thing but the fertilizers, the chemicals, the seeds have all gone up.”

In addition, he noted that PPL recently announced its rates will rise by 30% this summer.

“It’s not just one thing. It’s just everything. Everything is costing more, so the end product prices will have to go up,” Heckman said.

Gimbel, who often visits community events with the Gimbel Farms food truck, also expects prices will raise.

She said she hopes customers will understand.

“I hope that more people will support farmers selling directly,” she said, mentioning Tamaqua area farms including Zuckovich’s in Rush Township and Leiby’s in Walker Township.

The Penn State’s Schuylkill County Extension office said no farmers had reached out with specific concerns, but said many are complaining about the increase.