Standing Up to Fertilizer

The Iowa Corn Growers Association (ICGA) continues to prioritize creating profitability for corn farmers. Within the last couple of years, ICGA has pressured the fertilizer industry to address rising corn fertilizer costs for our farmers. We will continue that push until solutions are found.

Over four years ago, Iowa Corn was already raising concerns. In December 2021, ICGA signed onto a letter to Mosaic asking them to withdraw their request for protective tariffs on phosphate coming into the U.S. That same month, ICGA put together a letter to then Attorney General Tom Miller to look into fertilizer pricing matters.

Iowa Corn knew there would not be a quick or simple solution, and the ICGA Board made corn fertilizer cost a top priority for our organization. The Iowa Corn government relations team has worked on this issue continuously since.

SHINING A SPOTLIGHT ON HIGH CORN FERTILIZER COSTS

In the summer of 2022, ICGA continued meeting with our Congressional members to discuss the concerns around fertilizer prices.

ICGA farmer leaders hosted a roundtable with Senator Joni Ernst’s team to hear farmers’ concerns about historically high corn fertilizer costs per acre and the strain it puts on farm budgets. Other attendees at the roundtable included area farmers, government officials, state legislators and industry representatives.

ICGA leaders shared the impact high input prices have on farmers’ operating costs and possible solutions. Shortly after, Iowa Corn worked with Congressman Randy Feenstra and provided input for him to testify in front of the International Trade Commission (ITC), encouraging them to reduce tariffs on fertilizer imports.

The following year, Iowa Corn and fellow corn states held a USDA meeting related to high fertilizer pricing. Iowa Corn was also in the media highlighting the real issues that farmers were facing. In an article in the Iowa Capital Dispatch, then ICGA President Denny Friest shared, “We as farmers feel very offended that just because corn prices went up, the fertilizer prices went up. They have total control over whatever price they charge.”

ICGA was also among 57 agricultural organizations that signed a letter in December 2023 to the ITC, urging the reconsideration of tariffs on phosphate fertilizers imported from Morocco, arguing that tariffs exacerbate rising fertilizer prices and strain farmers’ finances.

EFFORTS AROUND HIGH FERTILIZER PRICES YIELD LEGISLATION

At the end of 2023, Senator Chuck Grassley introduced the Fertilizer Research Act that Iowa Corn initiated by taking input from ICGA members and economists and submitting the suggestions to Senator Grassley’s office. The Fertilizer Research Act will require the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to conduct a study on competition and trends in the fertilizer market and their subsequent impacts on price.

In September of 2025, Iowa Senators Grassley and Ernst, along with Wisconsin Senator Tammy Baldwin, reintroduced this bipartisan legislation to shine a light on market factors driving the high cost of fertilizer.

Recently, ICGA submitted testimony on high fertilizer costs to the Senate Judiciary Committee. ICGA President Mark Mueller, and the Iowa Corn government relations staff were present at the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing in Washington, D.C., where a written testimony was submitted on competition issues in the fertilizer industries. Grassley, who chairs the committee, led the hearing to examine how market consolidation drives up production costs.

“The massive increase in the cost of fertilizer is crushing corn growers in Iowa, and they aren’t alone. Growers across the country are facing an impossible decision: buy fertilizer or stay solvent,” stated Mueller’s testimony. “This is not sustainable, and it is well past time to stop ignoring the role of the fertilizer monopolies that dominate critical input markets. Right now, the price of our most essential input, fertilizer, is squeezing the life out of the American farmer like a vise.”

ICGA remains steadfast in our commitment to addressing rising corn fertilizer costs and ensuring the long-term profitability of Iowa’s corn farmers. Through persistent advocacy, and direct engagement with policymakers, ICGA will continue to elevate farmer concerns.

Our voice is stronger together; become a member of the Iowa Corn Growers Association today.