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Can 2022 stay disaster free for fertilizer?
A fertilizer specialist is hopeful farmers will be able to reevaluate plans after spring planting.
Jason Troendle with the Fertilizer Institute says it wasn’t until last year fertilizer prices started to really take off when what he calls a perfect storm of disasters took place, “Energy prices here, in terms of natural gas, have doubled since March, you have trade disruptions, you’ve had some huge winter storms back in February, you had Hurricane Ida that came through and hit the area that produces about 60 percent of the U.S.’s ammonia,” he explains.
Unfortunately, he says supply chain disruptions globally and domestically have impacted all major nutrients with nitrogen seeing the greatest availability issues, “Due to some supply chain disruptions as well as very strong demand as we look to continued elevated crop prices,” he says.
He says barring 2022 remains relatively disaster free, the summer could bring relief to fertilizer production and prices.
Despite record prices, Troendle says fertilizer consumption has stayed stable for the past several years as farmers continue focus on efficiencies.
Nicole Heslip is at the Michigan Agri-Business Association Winter Conference.
