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Fertilizer prices trending lower into spring 2023

An ag economist says fertilizer prices are still high despite significant declines from 2022.

David Widmar with Ag Economic Insights tells Brownfield prices have fallen, but not at the rate that they increased over the last two years. “Producers are going to need to keep a really close eye on their budgets, and thinking how this will play out over the next several months and even into next year.”

He says not all prices are reflecting the same declines. “Such as urea, anhydrous ammonia has also been down.  All products are down, but it has not been uniform.”

Widmar recommends farmers calculate a per-acre expense for their crop budget. “The expense for a corn application in the Midwest is down about $67 or 24 percent from year ago. Unfortunately, that’s still stubbornly high.   The blend 180-70-70 is about $200 an acre, which is second highest observation.”

And, he says, fertilizer prices should remain below record highs through 2023.