War In Iran Is Creating a Fertilizer Crisis Like Never Before
Surging prices for urea, ammonia and other nitrogen products.
Urea pellets at a fertilizer plant in Brisbane, Australia.
Photographer: Carla Gottgens/Bloomberg Listen to Odd Lots on Apple Podcasts
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We all know that the war with Iran has sent oil prices spiking. But it’s also pushing up the cost of all sorts of chemicals, including fertilizers like urea, ammonia and other nitrogen products that are essential for food production. This is all happening at the worst possible time — just before the spring planting season, when fertilizer is most needed. And while farmers have seen higher spot prices for things like urea before, notably back in 2022, there are already signs that this crisis might be worse. So how is fertilizer actually made? And what do higher fertilizer costs mean for farmers and for food prices? On this episode we speak with Alexis Maxwell, senior analyst on Bloomberg Intelligence's agriculture team.