LOS ANGELES, March 10 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. Justice Department has opened an antitrust probe into major fertilizer producers as farmers face much higher costs due to market concentration and supply disruptions amid the Iran war.
The U.S. administration has been tracking the spike in fertilizer prices as the Department of Agriculture (USDA) data show an over 60 percent rise in fertilizer cost between 2021 and early 2026, USDA Undersecretary for Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs Luke Lindberg told Politico on Tuesday.
Nitrogen fertilizer prices climbed about 95 percent, while potash prices increased more than 70 percent, according to the data.
The current investigation targets Nutrien, Mosaic, CF Industries Holdings, Koch and Yara International over potential price-fixing and collusion. Together, the companies control a large share of the U.S. fertilizer market.
The probe is in its early stages and is being handled by the Justice Department's Antitrust Division. Investigators are examining pricing practices for possible civil and criminal antitrust violations, including whether a small group of dominant companies coordinated prices in a market where farmers have limited alternatives.
Some industry associations said that consolidation in the fertilizer sector, combined with anti-dumping and countervailing duties on some imports, has left farmers exposed to high and volatile input costs.
Politico reported that the latest price spike appears closely tied to geopolitical developments. Shipping disruptions tied to the conflict involving Iran have cut tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, a critical route for Middle East fertilizer exports, raising concerns about access to fertilizers just as U.S. farmers prepare fields for spring planting.
The Progressive Farmer, a U.S. agricultural magazine, reported benchmark urea barge prices at New Orleans rose from about 475 U.S. dollars per metric ton to 520-550 dollars within a week of the strikes. Egyptian urea export prices also rose to around 550 dollars per metric ton in the days after the conflict began.
The International Food Policy Research Institute warned last week that as much as one-third of global fertilizer trade could be affected by a closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
Farmers say the price surge is already affecting their decisions. Missouri grain farmer Blake Hurst told Yahoo Finance on Tuesday that urea on his farm is now 30-50 percent more expensive than before the Iran conflict. Some growers are considering shifting acres from corn to soybeans, which require less nitrogen.
Analysts say the jump in nitrogen prices could reduce U.S. corn plantings by about 4,000-6,000 square km. ■