As American corn farmers prepare to plant one of the most expensive crops in history, the leaders at two of the nation’s largest fertilizer corporations are doing everything possible to make it even worse, according to the National Corn Growers Association (NCGA).
National Corn Growers Association President Jed Bower says countervailing duties on phosphate fertilizer from Morocco and Russia have led to a multiyear run-up in prices, with companies making billions of dollars off the back of the American farmer at a time when costs are rising across the board.
The International Trade Commission has initiated a review of the levies, which have been in place since 2021 and a decision is expected later in 2026.
In 2020, Mosaic petitioned the U.S. International Trade Commission to place tariffs on imports of phosphate fertilizers imported from Morocco and Russia, claiming that unfairly subsidized foreign companies were flooding the U.S. market with fertilizers and selling the products at extremely low prices. The petition was supported by fertilizer producers Simplot and Mosaic, with the NCGA opposing the petition.
There was an immediate halt of phosphate fertilizer shipments from Morocco into the U.S., making it hard for farmers to access a critical tool and causing prices of these products to skyrocket to their highest in history with tariffs ranging from the 16.6% to over 47% duties. Since the phosphate duties were put in place, farmers have paid $6.9 billion in additional costs.
Mosaic and Simplot support keeping the high tariffs while agricultural groups are urging their removal to lower fertilizer costs and ease financial pressure on farmers. Nutrien, one of the largest U.S. producers, said it’s time to lift the tariffs.
Tariffs have hit farmers and ranchers with both lower exports and higher input prices. Under Liberation Day tariffs, U.S. agricultural exports declined and the 2025 agricultural trade deficit increased by 10.8%. From February to October 2025 alone, tariffs increased the cost of goods like farm machinery and agricultural chemicals by $958 million.
Phosphate fertilizers are a vital micronutrient for plants, and farmers, particularly corn growers, cannot raise a crop without them. And, while growers purchase large quantities from companies in the U.S., it’s impossible for fertilizer companies in this country, many of which export tons of their products to other nations, to meet domestic demand.