SUPPLY FEARS SPARK FERTILISER BUYING RUSH BY FRENCH FARMERS,...

SUPPLY FEARS SPARK FERTILISER BUYING RUSH BY FRENCH FARMERS, YARA SAYS
10/29/2021
PARIS, Oct 29 (Reuters)

Farmers in France have stepped up fertiliser purchases this month amid fears of shortages as they wrestle with mounting costs that could affect next year's harvests, the French unit of fertiliser group Yara said.Soaring gas prices have unsettled nitrogen fertiliser markets that rely on gas as an input, leading manufacturers including Yara to reduce output and causing fertiliser prices to treble.That has raised the prospect of some farmers planting fewer fertiliser-intensive crops such as corn or spreading less of the nutrient, adding uncertainty to grain markets that have reached multi-year highs in 2021 on supply concerns.Fertiliser orders in France had been slower than usual in recent months as farmers baulked at rising costs, with Yara observing a 10-15% lag versus usual levels by the start of October, Nicolas Broutin, president of Yara France, said."During October there has been a wave of panic as people started talking about shortages," he told Reuters. "The products are available but they are extremely expensive."The upturn in demand at a time of constrained supply reinforced a rise in prices triggered by surging international fertiliser markets, he said.The buying rush should have let farmers catch up at least partly on fertiliser reserves but they will face more difficult cost decisions for the key spring growing period, Broutin said.Peak winter demand for gas and moves by countries including China to restrain fertiliser exports were likely to keep prices of the crop nutrients elevated, Broutin said.Yara is among manufacturers that produce nitrate fertiliser in France. Broutin was speaking as Yara announced on Friday a 10 million euro ($11.6 million) investment to mitigate greenhouse emissions at a factory in southwest France.France, however, relies on imports of urea and liquid nitrogen fertiliser, making it sensitive to global markets."What is clear in this crisis is that there is no food independence without energy independence," he said, noting that Yara was among those working on hydrogen-based ammonia to dispense with natural gas.($1 = 0.8640 euros) (Reporting by Gus Trompiz Editing by Mark Potter)© Copyright Thomson Reuters 2021. Click For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp