Fertilizer Prices Moving in Two Directions

Retail fertilizer prices moved in opposite directions the second week of May 2023, according to sellers surveyed by DTN.

Half of the fertilizers are higher compared to last month, while the other half is lower. One fertilizer is considerably higher, and another is notably lower. DTN designates a significant move as anything 5% or more.

Urea was 6% higher compared to last month. The nitrogen fertilizer had an average price of $664 per ton, back above $600/ton after one week of being below that level for the first time in a year and a half.

Slightly higher was DAP, MAP and UAN32 looking back to the prior month. DAP had an average price of $828/ton, MAP $826/ton and UAN32 $517/ton.

Leading fertilizer prices lower was anhydrous. The nitrogen fertilizer was 9% less expensive compared to last month, and it had an average price of $910/ton.

Three other fertilizers (potash, 10-34-0, UAN28) were slightly lower looking back a month. Potash had an average price of $627/ton, 10-34-0 $739/ton and UAN28 $423/ton.

On a price per pound of nitrogen basis, the average urea price was at $0.72/lb.N, anhydrous $0.55/lb.N, UAN28 $0.75/lb.N and UAN32 $0.81/lb.N.

Every spring, I look at the Purdue University Extension Crop Cost and Return Guide to see what level fertilizer costs are at in their crop budgets. As one might imagine, fertilizer costs are lower in the spring of 2023 compared to the spring of 2022.

Purdue's crop budgets are arranged in three different yield levels -- low-productivity soil, average-productivity soil and high-productivity soil. Within each level, different crops are included. These crops are continuous corn, rotation corn, rotation soybeans, wheat and double-crop soybeans.

In 2022, the fertilizer cost in the crop cost and return guide ranged from $64/acre in low-productivity double-crop beans to $333/ton in high-productivity continuous corn. A year later, fertilizer costs run from $54/acre in double-crop beans on low-productivity soil to $272/acre in continuous corn on high-productivity soil.

The fertilizer savings from 2023 to 2022 would range from $10/acre to $61/acre in Purdue's crop budgets. In addition, this budget was released in March, so fertilizer prices have generally declined since then, so the actual fertilizer costs might even be slightly lower.

Source: iowacorn.org

Photo Credit: istock-CactuSoup