San Pedro Sula, Honduras.
From a few months ago, fertilizers are going up in price and, in recent weeks, the trend has been accentuated, in line with the increase in global demand.
The causes of the increase in cost of most fertilizers are linked to the effects of the pandemic, which has shaken shipping and maritime trade, ports and international supply chains.
With the covid-19 it has not been easy to find available ships, many international trade and cargo lines are paralyzed or interrupted, the availability of containers is scarce and, as a consequence of all this, freight rates have sometimes multiplied in prices for two, for three or for four.
“The level of world stocks of fertilizers fell, but the agricultural sectors of the largest consumers of this input, such as Canada, the United States and Brazil, did not stop, since without production they cannot survive, and a very strong increase was generated in the consumption of fertilizers with few stocks on the market ”, said Mario Valladares, executive director of the Honduran Association of the Agricultural Health and Fertilizer Industry (Ahsafe).
The greatest situations of price increases are registered in phosphoric, potassium and compound fertilizers that include them.
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Currently, urea internationally is obtained 27% more expensive than its usual price, and in the case of phosphorus, 48%.
Honduras started in April and May of last year with its relatively stronger production cycle as a result of the Primera season, the agricultural sector had already imported the fertilizers in the last months of 2019.
“Over there we did not see the impact on the price level. The government was agree that the priority was the productive sector, because we could not stop producing “, added the executive director of Ahsafe.
The effect began to be felt by Honduran producers when, in the central strip, the United States started planting corn and therefore increased consumption of fertilizers.
During that period, with factories closed and ports paralyzed, the stock of these inputs began to become scarce “and it comes to impact us now that negotiations have begun in September and October 2020 For this season. It is a question of supply and demand, but the COVID and extreme weather conditions in fertilizer exporting countries have made everything more complex, ”Valladares said.
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Undoubtedly, this problem has a stronger impact on the producer, since he is the one who uses fertilizers and agrochemicals to nourish his crops.
Experts estimate that prices will level off in the second half of this year. The outlook is encouraging as the covid vaccination process progresses and also of the evolution of economic activity of countries with the gradual reopening.
However, while the market manages to level off, fertilizers are costing importers more and, therefore, the producer must purchase inputs at higher prices.
The above triggers more uncertainty; On the one hand, this increase cannot be disproportionately passed on to the consumer and, on the other, the producer cannot bear the entire economic burden on his own.
Analysts urge that governments make balances between producers and consumers, just as Argentina has already begun to analyze it since last week to make decisions with clear and precise information.
The use of these inputs in agri-food production varies according to the crop. For example, a tomato crop requires much more attention from the phytosanitary point of view than in the fertilization part.
In the case of agro-industrial crops such as sugar cane and coffee, they require fertilization.
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