How farmers are rising to a fertilizer shortfall
Key takeaways
- The war in Iran has sparked a global fertilizer shortage and is threatening food security.
- https://p.dw.com/p/5Bqb IWhat can farmers do when fertilizer is scarce?Image: CFOTO/picture alliance Advertisement Choked off shipping in the Strait of Hormuz isn't just grinding oil tankers to a halt.
- Nearly half of the world's traded urea, the most widely used nitrogen-based fertilizer, comes from the Gulf.
Why this matters: an international story with cross-border implications worth tracking.
The war in Iran has sparked a global fertilizer shortage and is threatening food security. What are farmers around the world doing to save their crops?
https://p.dw.com/p/5Bqb IWhat can farmers do when fertilizer is scarce?Image: CFOTO/picture alliance Advertisement Choked off shipping in the Strait of Hormuz isn't just grinding oil tankers to a halt. The Iran war is creating a one-two punch for the world's fertilizer supply, blocking both the export and one of its critical ingredients from leaving the Persian Gulf. It remains to be seen whether the temporary ceasefire reached on Tuesday will significantly ease that blockage.
Nearly half of the world's traded urea, the most widely used nitrogen-based fertilizer, comes from the Gulf. As does one-fifth of the world's liquified natural gas (LNG).