Agricultural Tyre Solutions: Equipment for Farm and Rural Tyre Disposal

By:     Conor Murphy

Agricultural tyre solutions are a genuine operational need across UK farming, where tractors, combine harvesters, self-propelled sprayers, telehandlers, trailers, and other farm machinery generate substantial tyre waste annually. A modern large arable farm with a fleet of high-horsepower tractors and harvesting equipment may generate agricultural tyre waste running to several tonnes each year; across the UK’s farming sector as a whole, this represents a significant and geographically dispersed disposal challenge.

Agricultural tyres present specific challenges that distinguish them from passenger car and even HGV tyre disposal. Their dimensions are extreme: the largest tractor rear tyres can measure 2.1 metres or more in diameter and weigh over 400 kg. A single combine harvester drive tyre can weigh 300 to 500 kg. These dimensions exceed the capacity of standard tyre processing equipment; specialist agricultural tyre processing capability is required to handle farm tyre waste.

The geographic dispersal of agricultural tyre generation across rural farming areas creates collection economics fundamentally different from urban tyre retail operations. A collection contractor serving arable farms in rural Lincolnshire or livestock farms in Cumbria must travel long distances between collection points; the per-tonne collection cost for agricultural tyres from dispersed farm locations is substantially higher than for urban car tyre collection from tyre retail chains. This collection cost reality affects the economics of legitimate disposal routes and contributes to the persistent problem of agricultural tyre stockpiling or burning on farms.

Gradeall International manufactures the agricultural tyre shear, OTR tyre sidewall cutter, and OTR tyre splitter for agricultural and OTR tyre processing, alongside the MKII tyre baler for baling car-sized tyres from rural collection operations. With nearly 40 years of manufacturing experience and equipment in over 100 countries, Gradeall serves agricultural tyre processors across the UK and internationally.

Agricultural Tyre Solutions: Legal Disposal Obligations for Farmers

UK farmers generating agricultural tyre waste have the same duty of care obligations under section 34 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 as any other business waste producer. This means:

No on-farm burning. Burning used tyres on farm land is an offence under the Environmental Protection Act 1990. Tyre fires produce highly toxic smoke, including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, benzene, and particulate matter; they generate contaminated run-off from fire suppression water; and they create residues that contaminate soil. Environment Agency, SEPA, NIEA, and NRW enforcement officers regularly investigate and prosecute farmers found burning tyres. The perception that rural burning is a private matter beyond regulatory reach is incorrect; enforcement action follows complaints from neighbours, aerial surveillance, and routine compliance inspections.

No landfilling of whole or shredded tyres. UK waste regulations prohibit the landfilling of whole tyres and shredded tyres. Farmers cannot arrange for farm tyres to be tipped in farm pits or undeclared on-farm disposal areas; this constitutes illegal disposal subject to the same section 33 EPA 1990 penalties as fly-tipping.

Duty of care documentation. Agricultural tyre waste transferred to a collection contractor must be accompanied by waste transfer notes describing the waste, confirming the contractor’s carrier registration, and retained by the farm for two years. Farmers who transfer agricultural tyres to unlicensed parties face duty of care liability if the tyres are subsequently improperly disposed of.

Environment Agency guidance. The Environment Agency has published specific guidance on agricultural waste management, including tyres; the guidance is available at gov.uk. NIEA, SEPA, and NRW have equivalent publications for their jurisdictions. These documents confirm the legal position and identify legitimate disposal options clearly.

Gradeall’s Agricultural Tyre Shear

The agricultural tyre shear is specifically designed for reducing the size of large agricultural tyres before onward processing or collection. Agricultural tyres of the dimensions found on modern tractors, combine harvesters, and self-propelled equipment cannot be processed whole by standard tyre shredders or balers; they must be reduced in size first.

The agricultural tyre shear cuts through the tyre sidewall and body, collapsing the tyre from its bulky three-dimensional ring form into flat sections. Cut sections occupy a fraction of the volume of whole agricultural tyres; a standard trailer or collection vehicle that could carry perhaps ten to fifteen whole large tractor tyres can carry fifty or more cut sections. This volume reduction directly improves the collection economics for rural agricultural tyre processors; fewer collection movements cover the same tyre volume, reducing per-tonne collection costs.

For tyre processors serving agricultural areas, the agricultural tyre shear enables the business to offer agricultural tyre collection services profitably that would be economically marginal without on-site or mobile size reduction capability. Mobile deployment of the agricultural tyre shear, visiting farm locations to cut tyres on-site before collection, is an operational model that addresses the dispersed farm collection challenge.

Agricultural Tyre Processors: Serving the Rural Sector

The most effective model for agricultural tyre waste management is purpose-built agricultural tyre processing operations that serve rural catchment areas. These operations combine agricultural tyre collection from farms with on-site processing for crumb rubber production, civil engineering baling of car-sized tyres from mixed rural collections, and specific processing routes for the large agricultural tyre fraction.

Collection logistics. Agricultural tyre processors serving rural areas operate scheduled collection rounds from farm locations, typically using flat-bed or hook-lift vehicles with loading equipment capable of handling very heavy individual tyre units. Route planning that aggregates collection from multiple farm locations in each geographic area minimises travel cost per tonne collected.

Mixed rural tyre streams. Rural collection operations typically collect a mixed stream: some agricultural tyres from farm machinery, some car and van tyres from rural residential and small business locations, some light commercial tyres from rural trades. The mixed stream requires flexible processing capability across the size range; Gradeall’s equipment range covers the full spectrum from the agricultural tyre shear for the largest agricultural tyres through to the MKII tyre baler for car-sized tyres.

Civil engineering Bale demand in rural areas. Rural infrastructure projects, including road widening, drainage improvement, and embankment stabilisation, create local civil engineering bale demand that rural processors are well-positioned to supply. Developing relationships with local authorities, highway contractors, and civil engineering consultants active in rural areas identifies the civil engineering market for PAS 108 bale supply without long-distance transport.

“Agricultural tyre management is one of the most challenging segments of the UK tyre recycling market, but it’s also one where good equipment makes a significant difference,” says Conor Murphy, Director of Gradeall International. “Our agricultural tyre shear transforms the collection economics by dramatically reducing tyre volume before transport. Rural processors who invest in the right agricultural tyre equipment can serve the farm sector profitably while providing farmers with a legitimate, compliant disposal route.

Contact Gradeall International for agricultural tyre processing equipment.

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