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Environment
Kathleen Merrigan, Executive Director, Swette Center for Sustainable Food Systems, Arizona State University

Fertilizer prices are soaring – and that's an opportunity to promote more sustainable ways of growing crops

United States USDA Joe Biden Department of Agriculture
A farmer spreads fertilizer on a field in Berks County, Pa. Harold Hoch/MediaNews Group/Reading Eagle via Getty Images

Farmers are coping with a fertilizer crisis brought on by soaring fossil fuel prices and industry consolidation. The price of synthetic fertilizer has more than doubled since 2021, causing great stress in farm country.

This crunch is particularly tough on those who grow corn, which accounts for half of U.S. nitrogen fertilizer use. The National Corn Growers Association predicts that its members will spend 80% more in 2022 on synthetic fertilizers than they did in 2021. A recent study estimates that on average, this will represent US$128,000 in added costs per farm.

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