IBC totes for agriculture: from irrigation to honey.
For irrigation, fertilizer, and pesticide mixing, an inspected industrial-grade used tote is ideal and affordable. For anything ingested — livestock water, maple syrup, honey — choose food-grade or rebottled with prior-contents documentation. In winter, leave headspace and shelter totes so freezing water can't split the HDPE. One tote replaces about five 55-gallon drums.
The whole decision comes down to one word: consumable. If a person or animal will ingest what's inside — or if it will contact food — you need a food-grade tote. If not, an inspected industrial tote does the job for less. Get that right and everything else — size, valve, freight — is easy.
On the farm
Five ways growers put totes to work.
Irrigation & water storage
Buffer well or pond water for drip lines, hand-watering, and spot irrigation. A 330-gallon tote on a stand gives steady gravity feed without a pump running.
Liquid fertilizer & dosing
Store starter, N-P-K blends, and micronutrients by the pallet and meter them through an injector. Match EPDM or Viton gaskets to the formulation.
Pesticide & herbicide mixing
Batch and hold spray solutions (non-food use) with a dedicated industrial tote. Keep it labeled and never rotate it back to potable or feed service.
Livestock water
Provide clean drinking water for cattle, hogs, and poultry — but use a food-grade or rebottled tote so nothing an animal drinks ever touched a farm chemical.
Maple syrup & honey
Collect, hold, and transport syrup and honey in food-grade totes with documented prior contents — the only grade fit for a harvested edible product.
Rugged, stackable, movable
A galvanized steel cage takes forklift and loader handling in a barnyard, stacks two high, and rides a standard 40" × 48" pallet position.
Food-grade vs. industrial.
Food-grade totes have only ever held FDA-approved food-safe products and ship with prior-contents documentation and food-safe gaskets. Use them for syrup, honey, livestock water, and anything else that's ingested.
Industrial totes previously held non-hazardous liquids and are perfect for irrigation, fertilizer, and crop- protection mixing. Once a tote runs a farm chemical, keep it in that lane permanently.
Read the guides →Cold-weather care
Keeping totes safe through a freeze.
Leave headspace
Water expands as it freezes. Never store a tote brim-full in freezing weather — leave room for the ice to grow so it can't stress or split the HDPE bottle.
Drain the valve and lines
Water trapped in the discharge valve and hoses freezes first and cracks fittings. Drain and blow out lines before a hard freeze, or keep an EPDM valve you can replace easily.
Shelter and insulate
Store totes under cover or in a barn where you can. Where they must stay outside, a tote blanket or straw wrap slows heat loss and buys time between fills.
Keep it moving
Liquid in use rarely freezes solid. Circulate irrigation or dosing water, or draw totes down before the coldest nights so there's little left to freeze.
Questions
Agriculture IBC tote FAQ.
Can I use a used IBC tote for liquid fertilizer?
Are IBC totes safe for drinking water for livestock?
Which tote do I need for maple syrup or honey?
Will an IBC tote crack if the water freezes?
How much does a used agricultural IBC tote cost versus new?
Need totes for the growing season?
Send your quantity, size, grade, and zip. We reply by email within one business day with inspection-passed totes ready to ship anywhere in the country.