Seventy percent of wheat farmers and 66 percent of corn farmers are unable to afford all their required fertilizer this year. That is one of the findings in the American Farm Bureau Federation Fertilizer Availability Survey. Farm Bureau economist Faith Parum said fertilizer purchasing patterns differ by region. “Fertilizer purchasing patterns are different by region, and so, in the Midwest, it’s more normal to pre-book your fertilizer with over 67 percent of our farmers in the Midwest pre-booked their fertilizer, compared to only 19 percent in the South.” Farm diesel prices are up 46 percent since the end of February. “Even if the conflict stopped today, and we saw normal shipments resuming, it would take a while for those prices to come back down to normal. We’re going to see the impacts of this for a few months ahead.” Nearly 6,000 farmers responded to this survey, which was conducted from April 3rd to April 11th.
