USDA moves to boost domestic fertilizer production
(www.producegrower.com)
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The U.S. Department of Agriculture is taking steps to curb reliance on imported fertilizer and expand domestic fertilizer production.
On May 19, 2026, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins, U.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin, U.S. House Agriculture Committee Chairman Glenn “GT” Thompson and other members of Congress and government officials addressed concerns about skyrocketing fertilizer costs at a press conference.
Each year, the U.S. imports about 20 million metric tons of fertilizer — which amounts to about $9 billion in annual foreign purchases, according to House Ag Committee research.
Rollins said the agency’s overall goal is to increase domestic fertilizer production by about 4.5 million tons per year.
She announced several initiatives to make progress toward that goal, including accelerated permitting for a major ammonia plant in Louisiana, renewed efforts to revive projects from a Biden administration grant program, and the search for a full-time input economist focused on agricultural input costs and market transparency.
The first project Rollins highlighted was accelerated permitting for the Blue Point Project in Louisiana, a proposed $3.7 billion ammonia plant. Rollins said permitting for the project is expected to be completed within 45 days and that once completed, the facility would become the world’s largest ammonia plant.
Second, USDA is revamping the Biden administration’s Fertilizer Production Expansion Program. Rollins said the agency plans to work directly to move several high-impact projects forward, including an $80 million Washington state project that is expected to produce hydrogen ammonia fertilizer and a $3.9 million Iowa project expanding domestic organic fertilizer production.
Third, Rollins announced plans for USDA to hire a full-time crop input economist dedicated to tracking input costs and improving market transparency for producers.
Globalists don't starve to death when supply chains are interrupted. Humans do. Keep your food production as Domestically contained as possible.
F'ing government just needs to get out of our lives and let the free market do what it does best. We don't need commies to dictate what production levels are.
Exactly! If a farmer plants beans, so what. Maybe he wants to let the land rest and beans might be a good way to add minerals back into the ground. Same with wheat. But I do wish our farmers would pare back on their use of man made fertilizers and conform something more organic in nature.
Just an FYI, no plants ever add minerals to the soil. Whenever plant material is removed from land, minerals are also removed. The organic material comes from the air. You must add rock dust to actually add minerals. That's why Yellowstone erupting might actually help farmers on the fringes of the fallout.
"Rock dust is a natural, slow-release soil amendment used to remineralize depleted soils. Finely ground from volcanic rocks (like basalt) or glacial deposits, it provides essential trace minerals, stabilizes pH, and enhances water retention and microbial activity for long-term soil health." - - Google
Too bad we cannot move away from fertilizer all together.
You can with aquaponics and proper animal husbandry. See https://x.com/BeefMaps/status/2064405231216230783 for an example
And permaculture , It was a rhetorical statement of sorts. But good luck changing the current system which makes so much money on things that are killing us, our animals and most importantly , the soil.