News Brief
Russian officials have said they will suspend fertilizer exports.
Fertilizer costs were already on the rise over the last few years, but this latest move by Russia 鈥� one of the world鈥檚 largest fertilizer exporters 鈥� could make things worse for U.S. farmers.
Russia previously stopped exporting one type of fertilizer, ammonium nitrate, which officials there said was to protect its farmers from already high costs. But this latest move comes after Russian threats of retaliation over Western sanctions.
It鈥檚 unclear whether the export ban will include all countries, or just certain Western nations. Canada is a major supplier of U.S. fertilizers, but a decrease in the global market could still boost costs.
Matt Dorsey farms in south-central Idaho. He already had concerns about inflated fertilizer and gas prices before this announcement.
鈥淚t鈥檚 hard to even anticipate or guess the rise in costs at this point,鈥� he said.
That doesn鈥檛 account for supply chain issues 鈥� or drought.
Sean Ellis with the Idaho Farm Bureau Federation highlighted yet another challenge: the labor force.
鈥淵eah, farmers are having a harder time now than ever finding labor,鈥� he said.
Ellis said there is some good news: he hasn鈥檛 heard of any large movement to leave fields empty this spring. However, some farmers have said they will change what crops they grow.
Ultimately, Ellis said the increasing costs will lead to higher prices in the store, even if farmers don鈥檛 make any more money. That鈥檚 because higher costs are squeezing everyone along the supply chain, from farmers to distributors to consumers.
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