NATIONAL NEWS – U.S. farmers drowning from fallout of Strait of Hormuz

By Renae Hefty

As planting season is beginning, all trade through the Strait of Hormuz has been disrupted by the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran, making many goods more expensive to purchase and ship. After weeks of war, U.S. farmers are starting to feel the effects. The price of vital farming resources, such as fuel and fertilizer has risen. 20% of the world’s oil and one third of the world’s fertilizer is shipped through the strait. The price of crude oil has gone up at least 43%, affecting the price of gas and diesel. Many vehicles and most machinery required for farming crops run on diesel, which has risen by one dollar in the past month. This is only the second time in history that diesel has cost over five dollars. The price of nitrogen fertilizer has jumped 18% and urea has jumped 35%.

The American Farm Bureau Federation and 54 agricultural trade associations wrote a letter to President Donald Trump earlier this month, asking for economic relief for farmers to be included in the funding for the war. The farming economy has already been strained by inflation. The largest buyer of soybeans, China, is taking its business to Argentina, due to the high reciprocal tariffs Trump enacted. The 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine also cut off sources of fertilizer, and prices have remained high since that invasion. Senate Majority Leader John Thune has indicated that he would support a farmer bailout package attached to a Department of Homeland Security funding bill. The Environmental Protection Agency has temporarily waived limitations on making cheaper blends of gasoline in the U.S. in an attempt to slow the rise of fuel prices.