Get ahead with fertiliser orders, advise traders

Farmers are being advised to order their fertiliser early this year, to ensure sufficient supplies for the spring application window.

The Farming Fertiliser Stakeholder Group, which comprises a range of farming unions and organisations, has issued a statement urging producers not to leave their orders to the last minute.

See also: Find all our Markets content in one place

“Due to geopolitical issues, the fertiliser market has been disrupted this year,” it said. “The issue is not simply whether fertiliser exists somewhere in the market. The real challenge is whether enough fertiliser can be imported, manufactured, stored, processed, bagged, loaded and delivered to farms in time.

“If too many orders are left until later in the season, the supply chain may not be able to process and deliver everything quickly enough. Early discussions with suppliers help the whole system plan ahead and reduce the risk of delivery bottlenecks.”

Less reliable

The Ukraine war has made Russian fertiliser and raw material supplies less reliable, while disruption in the Gulf region has added pressure to the global nitrogen market.

“The region is important because it is closely linked to natural gas, ammonia, urea and sulphur supply chains,” said the statement.

“These are key building blocks for fertiliser manufacture. Disruption in the region can affect global trade flows, pricing and competition for alternative cargoes. If major global buyers compete for alternative supply, smaller markets like the UK can become exposed to tighter availability and higher replacement costs.”

Price rises

Over the past week, rising gas prices in the EU have driven urea prices up by about £10/t, said James Davies, business development manager at the AF Group.

Gas prices have reached their highest level since 2023, at €70/MWh, and winter purchasing is running behind normal, at about 60% covered rather than the more normal 80%.

“Raw materials are pushing the production cost up and suppliers are pulling their urea and ammonium nitrate (AN) prices daily,” he added. The last price posted for granular urea was £470/t delivered, with CF Nitram at £455-£460/t and imported AN even higher.

High sulphur costs have driven diammonium phosphate values up to £760-£770/t delivered, with triple super phosphate at £650/t. However, muriate of potash remains good value at £350/t, with polysulphate stable at £220/t.

“I think markets will remain firm, if not firm further,” said Mr Davies. But with the UK carbon border adjustment mechanism coming into force in January 2027, this could drive pre-Christmas buying demand.