Middle East Conflict Spikes Fuel and Fertilizer Costs for Michigan Farmers

A new report from Indiana's WRTV says both fuel and fertilizer prices are expected to continue rising across the Midwest, including right here in Michigan, just as the busy and important spring planting season approaches.

Michigan farmers say the timing could not be worse.

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For our neighbors to the south, farmers say it is getting harder to lock in fertilizer prices in Indiana. In fact, the market is so unsettled that some are reconsidering what they will plant this year. Blain Hizer, a farmer in Kewanna, Indiana told WRTV,

If you go to your local co-op or wherever you get your fertilizer, a lot of them just took their bids off the table; you couldn't even get a price...so farmers right now are trying to consider whether they stick with corn or do they switch to beans, plant more beans, and go that route where they don't have to put the nitrogen on

So, What's Driving Up Prices?

The same conflict driving up gas prices in the Middle East is also pushing fertilizer costs higher. According to WRTV, disruptions to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a key route for oil, fertilizer, and other materials, are increasing costs. Kalamazoo's WWMT adds,

Rising tensions between the United States and Iran are beginning to show up at the gas pump, with Michigan among the states seeing some of the fastest increases in prices. According to GasBuddy petroleum analyst Patrick De Haan, Michigan is currently in the top five states experiencing rising gas prices tied to the situation involving Iran.

We know from past experience that when fuel prices soar and farmers face higher costs, grocery prices often follow. You know, the groceries that are already way too expensive! Unfortunately, an impact such as this can ripple through the entire economy. Don't expect prices to come down anytime soon.