Food prices are rising … again. Americans’ grocery bills are an astounding 20 percent higher than in 2022, and prices are expected to further climb 3.6 percent in 2026. There is no shortage of reasons for this volatility: geopolitical issues, rising labor costs, and drought, to name a few. But one key cause of sticker shock – phosphate fertilizer tariffs – has largely escaped the attention of policymakers. As lawmakers on Capitol Hill consider the Farm Bill, there is a rare opportunity to end these destructive taxes and lower food prices for all Americans. In particular, Rep. Miller-Meeks’ (R-Iowa) amendment to prohibit duties on phosphate fertilizer imports would be an important step in the right direction. Farmers can bring affordable products to market, but not with the current protectionist policies in place.
Over the past few years, U.S. farmers have had to navigate an unusually tight and volatile fertilizer market, driven by a mix of global shocks, protectionist policies, and domestic constraints. The disruption began in earnest during the COVID-19 pandemic, when supply chains seized up and shipping costs surged, but it intensified after the Russia–Ukraine War. Sanctions, export restrictions, and logistical bottlenecks sharply reduced global availability. Prices for fertilizers spiked to record highs in 2022, forcing American farmers to absorb steep cost increases just as fuel and labor expenses were also rising. Prices receded since then, but remain at elevated levels.
One key reason is misguided trade policies spanning the Biden and Trump administrations. As Reason reporter Eric Boehm notes, “In March 2021, the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) determined that fertilizer imports from Morocco and Russia ‘materially injured’ American companies and implemented tariffs that range from 16 percent to 47 percent. … the tariffs imposed high costs. Tariffs on Moroccan fertilizer imports cost U.S. farmers an estimated $6.9 billion between 2021 and 2025, according to a report published earlier this year by the Texas A&M Agriculture and Food Policy Center.”
In response to this policy-imposed supply shock, farmers have gotten by as best they can. Many shifted application strategies, using precision agriculture tools to apply fertilizer more efficiently or cutting back on usage where possible, even at the risk of lower yields. Others altered crop rotations, favoring less fertilizer-intensive crops like soybeans over corn, which requires heavier nitrogen inputs. Some producers also leaned more heavily on manure or alternative soil amendments to stretch limited supplies. But even the best adaptation strategies mean higher production costs passed along to consumers.
At the same time, policymakers have pushed to expand domestic production capacity, though top-down efforts to achieve this are unlikely to succeed and would almost certainly involve taxpayer dollars via grant and loan programs. Ending harmful tariffs on fertilizer is a far quicker and more effective way to bolster supply and cut costs and would not cost taxpayers a dime.
More than 50 agricultural groups and farm organizations are laudably leading the charge for free trade in fertilizer. In a March letter sent to the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC), they noted that countervailing duty orders (CVDs) on imports of phosphate fertilizer “have placed additional strain on farmers already navigating volatile commodity markets, weather uncertainty, and rising expenses across nearly every category of farm operations, and have impacted the affordability crisis that is so critical today. For many growers, fertilizer represented 40 percent of operating costs in 2025, and price increases in this critical input directly affect planting decisions, long-term viability, and the livelihoods of farm families.”
If the ITC will not swiftly act, lawmakers must take the lead and eliminate these harmful import taxes. It’s time for trade policies that work for American farmers and their millions of consumers, not bureaucrats in Washington, D.C.
