- Most farms are not supplied with nitrogen fertilizers.
- Farmers agree that the current price of fertilizers is completely out of touch with reality.
NPK entered at the last minute
NPK fertilizers go to the first “fire”. Unfortunately, there is not much good news here either. Huge delays in the deliveries of compound fertilizers increase the problems with rape sowing. Fertilizers ordered at the beginning of July only reach the farms. Some rapeseed growers have still not received the goods ordered for pre-sowing fertilization. Not wanting to wait for deliveries, some farms start sowing without fertilizer. This one will be topped up. Many orders for “multicomponent” placed at the turn of July / August for grains will also arrive at the last minute (we received this information from distributors).
How does it look affordable? In the case of full truck loads, most distributors do not provide prices at the moment because the goods are not available. However, the last valuation of Polifoska 6 was around PLN 4,600. At the points – where retail quantities are sold – prices are even higher. There are companies that have NPK immediately, but farmers have reported that some of them do not intend to sell them at the moment. Is it an expectation of an even higher price? We can buy NPK fertilizers in some companies from the square, but at exorbitant prices. Polifoska 6 already exceeds 5,000 PLN / t. This means that giving 200 kg of this fertilizer for oilseed rape costs PLN 1000 / ha. No wonder that some farmers give up fertilization with multicomponents, which we hear more and more often. While fertilizers are also applied to rape, not necessarily to cereals. Especially in rape stands.
Confusion with nitrogen – it’s hard to buy anything
The situation with nitrogen fertilizers is not very interesting. In fact, no one expected that the market situation would lead to a drastic limitation or suspension of production already in August. Few farms have purchased nitrogen. Traders receive many inquiries regarding the availability of goods and prices, but they spread their hands – there is nothing to sell and it is not known when the goods will be available (at least in the case of full truck loads).
On the other hand, drivers who deliver fertilizer to farms say that the factories have huge amounts of fertilizer. Perhaps it is a product that was ordered earlier and produced just for these orders? Or maybe it is a stock of goods and we are not really threatened with a lack of fertilizer on the market?
Regardless of what the answer to this question is – there is a lot of confusion in the market. Sales representatives mention that customers call and express their willingness to purchase at least part of the spring requirement. However, hearing that saltpeter reaches PLN 5,000 / t, they resign from these decisions, because farms simply cannot afford such expensive fertilization.
Auto saltpeter in the price of a new car
Some farms give up shopping at this point. Auto saltpetre – if there is an offer – it is an expense of about PLN 120 thousand. zloty. In turn, one farmer tells us that he is changing the fertilization strategy. This season, saltpeter is being given up in favor of urea, the pure ingredient of which is the cheapest (PLN 10.50 / kg N). Nitrogen is much more expensive in calcium ammonium nitrate, calcium ammonium nitrate or UAN. Here, however, the approach to fertilization needs to be changed – the starting dose must be given well in advance. Urea is still available in many companies, but it is imported from Egypt. The prices of urea with the inhibitor oscillate around PLN 4,800 / t, without the inhibitor PLN 4,600 / t (but this one can only be used for foliar fertilization). The prices do not include the cost of transport from the port where the goods will be unloaded.
It is difficult to say what the situation will look like next. Is saltpeter at this price worth buying? Of course not. This is not a real price. The only problem is whether it will not be a limited product. The same situation applies to compound fertilizers. We will monitor the situation on the fertilizer market on an ongoing basis. However, there is no one who can predict what the next days will bring on the fertilizer market.
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