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Sticker shock for farmers looking to lock in fertilizer for 2022

Some farmers looking to lock in fertilizer for next year are experiencing sticker shock.

Brandon Fast, who grows corn and soybeans in southwest Minnesota, tells Brownfield he recently talked to several local ag retailers about locking in prices for 2022.

“And it was considerably higher. In some cases I’ve seen 40 percent higher, and there’s been fear it could even end up going higher than that.”

He suspects part of the reason coops are promoting pre-booking right now is to get an idea of what kind of demand to expect.

“Trying to get as much in now as they can. The rail situation and the barge situation has become more and more difficult for all these (ag retailers), and frankly we haven’t faced this much of an issue when it comes to ag transportation for quite some time.”

Fast is chairman of the Minnesota Corn Research and Promotion Council.

University of Illinois farm management specialist Gary Schnitkey recently told Brownfield fertilizer prices will likely approach record high levels in 2022.