Farm Group Seeks Policy Change to Help Build Fertilizer Storage

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(North Dakota Monitor) – Farmers have been hit by spiking fertilizer and fuel prices as the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran disrupts global trade and supplies, but a North Dakota ag group is trying to work on a long-term solution to fertilizer shortages.

The North Dakota Grain Growers Association is urging federal policymakers to change the rules of a loan program that helps farmers with grain storage. The group wants to expand the program to cover on-farm fertilizer storage.

Ed Kessel, past president of the group, said it’s important to have access to fertilizer when it is really needed. More on-farm storage would help guarantee that fertilizer is applied when the crop can use it most efficiently, he said.

Kessel said global demand for fertilizer is outpacing supply, but simply increasing production doesn’t necessarily solve the problem, he said.