Opinion: Tariffs on fertilizers are hurting Iowa farmers and consumers
Fertilizer prices are at an all-time high and Iowa farmers need immediate relief. There are a number of factors impacting input costs including soaring natural gas prices, severe storms, supply chain disruptions, and more. However, the only remedy to provide immediate relief is to repeal government-imposed duties on fertilizer imports from our critical and trusted trade allies.
The issue is that the United States does not produce enough phosphate fertilizer to meet domestic demand. Phosphate fertilizers are an essential component of modern farming. Inadequate levels of phosphorous can result in stunted plants, restricted root and shoot growth, and lowered production in grain and bean crops, mainstays of Iowa agriculture.
Each year, up to one-third of the phosphate fertilizer American farmers use is supplied by imports. Our global trading partners (and frequent adversaries) China and Russia export phosphate fertilizer but, perhaps surprisingly to many people, longtime U.S. ally Morocco accounts for about 60% of the imported supply that supports U.S. agricultural producers. Morocco holds close to three-quarters of the world’s phosphate reserves.
But in 2020, the U.S. international Trade Commission decided to impose a countervailing duty on phosphate fertilizer from Morocco. That duty, in addition to other tariffs on Chinese and Russian phosphate, affects about 85% of the global market open to U.S. consumers. As a result, farmers saw fertilizer prices rise by roughly half from 2020 to 2021 — and these prices are only continuing to rise. Today fertilizer prices are more than double their cost in 2020.
In addition, the trade commission has turned its attention to ammonium nitrate fertilizer imports from Trinidad and Tobago, another crucial fertilizer for farming operations. Imports of fertilizer from those countries have decreased by 97% since the Department of Commerce started the process of imposing duties on them.
These unwarranted duties on fertilizers are a terrible policy decision that will jeopardize supplies of basic foods for American consumers. They also further drive up commodity prices that are already at sky-high levels because of supply chain problems, the lingering impact of the pandemic and other drivers of inflation.
Iowa farmers are key producers of foods that meet global nutrition demands. It is essential that our government’s policies on agricultural issues — such as maintaining adequate supplies of affordable fertilizer — support Iowa growers, not make it harder for them to do their crucial jobs.
In March, a group of bipartisan U.S. senators and members of Congress signed a letter to Jason Kearns, chairman of the U.S. International Trade Commission, calling attention to damaging fertilizer tariffs. They strongly urged him to reconsider duties his agency has already placed on phosphates from Morocco and to suspend the preliminary duties in process on ammonium nitrate fertilizers from Trinidad and Tobago.
U.S. Sens. Chuck Grassley and Joni Ernst and U.S. Reps. Cindy Axne, Randy Feenstra and Mariannette Miller-Meeks of Iowa were signers, and I applaud them for standing up for Iowa’s farmers and families However, fertilizer costs are continuing to climb, and we need action now. The Biden administration is currently considering dropping tariffs on China as a way to lower inflation, so why would the trade commission not drop tariffs on fertilizer imports from our trusted trading partners to help America’s farmers and families?
Ray Gaesser is a soybean and corn farmer in Adams County. He is a past president of both the National Soybean Association and the Iowa Soybean Association.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Opinion: Tariffs on fertilizers hurt Iowa farmers and consumers
