WASHINGTON, D.C. (RFD News) — The White House this week put a temporary pause on countervailing duties on Moroccan phosphate.
USDA Deputy Secretary Stephen Vaden says the move is a good start, but he says the U.S. also needs to address concentration in the phosphate fertilizer market.
“We have an incredibly concentrated market in phosphate fertilizer, with just two companies controlling the vast majority of the market share,” Vaden said. “One of those two companies has repeatedly come out, despite being the beneficiary of trade remedies, and saying, ‘I’m going to cut production, I’m going to curtail production.’”
Vaden says recent fertilizer pricing challenges did not begin with the Strait of Hormuz closure, adding that the issue has been building for some time.
“Or, more recently, if you look at what they’ve actually done — but don’t talk about that much on their earnings calls — they’re doing a record export pace to Brazil,” Vaden continued. “In other words, at a time when American farmers are wondering, ‘Am I going to have the fertilizer that I need for the fall application season?’ One of our largest phosphate fertilizer companies is shipping as much as it can out of the country to American farmers’ chief competitor, Brazil.”
The executive order on phosphate imports is good through next year, and officials believe the move will save farmers nearly $2 billion annually.
