Fertiliser price increases are being felt by food producers across the globe.
High global demand and constrained supply of fertiliser has seen Ballance Agri-Nutrients lift its urea price from $1190 to $1440 a tonne.
In a message to its shareholders, general manager of sales Jason Minkhorst said the situation was a result of high energy prices and Chinese exporters limiting trade.
“We have not experienced fertiliser prices like this since 2008-2009,” Minkhorst said.
Fertiliser price increases are being felt by food producers across the globe.
“Since November 2020, farmers and growers in the USA have seen increases of up to 175%, Australia has seen urea cost increases of 230%, and Ireland has experienced increases in nitrogen costs of up to 250%,” he said.
SustaiN increased from $1239-$1489; DAP has lifted from $1295-$1525; Nrich SOA has changed from $642-$742; PhaSedN has increased from $815-$925; and Sulphurgain Pure is up from $795-$895.
Ballance’s main competitor Ravensdown has left its prices unchanged as of January 28.
“Globally, fertiliser prices have been marching upward for several macroeconomic and geopolitical reasons. Ravensdown does what it can to help New Zealand customers manage the volatility and ‘even out’ the spikes, but there are limits to how long the co-operative can absorb the rising international costs,” its spokesperson said in a statement.
“At this time, prices for Ravensdown’s mainline products have not changed, but we are evaluating the situation on a daily basis and will communicate with customers if there’s any change.”
