Fertilizer
An executive order on biotech and biomanufacturing was signed into law by President Biden on Tuesday. The order tasks Secy. Vilsack with reporting how the initiative can best benefit ag, but some funds are spoken for.
Rail shipments are already starting to shut down ahead of a possible strike which could begin as early as this Friday and it couldn’t come at a worse time for agriculture.
“I feel like every day is one day closer to having the President declare a climate emergency,” says Newlin. “Once that happens, I don’t know what it will mean for ag, or what it’s going to open up the door to.”
Norwegian fertilizer-maker Yara posted slightly higher than expected second-quarter profits on Tuesday and warned there could be shortages of nitrogen-based fertilizers amid high gas prices.
U.S. natural gas futures rose 2% to a four-week high on forecasts for hotter weather and more demand than previously expected. Extreme heat already boosted power demand to record highs in several parts of the country.
Gold Eagle Cooperative in Hardy, Iowa suffered a scare on Tuesday afternoon when the bin under its fertilizer building exploded.
After hitting record highs, fertilizer prices are finally cooling down.
Yes, the problem could also be a nitrogen deficiency or even a phosphate deficiency. Check out the photos provided to identify which deficiency your crop is encountering now and determine next steps.
You may need more nitrogen to fuel this year’s crop adequately. Also, cutworms are on the move. Ferrie advises dropping your threshold tolerance to 1.5%.
Fertilizer prices, led by CF Industries, fell in Thursday’s trading. Nitrogen prices reportedly plunged 30%, partly due to demand destruction.