Higher fertilizer prices are making the world's food supply more expensive for wealthy countries and less abundant for poorer ones, as farmers skimp on nutrients for their crops and get lower yields.
The aid group Action Aid warns that families in the Horn of Africa are already being driven “to the brink of survival.’’
For corn and cabbage farmer Jackson Koeth, 55, of Eldoret in western Kenya, the conflict in Ukraine was distant and puzzling until he had to decide whether to go ahead with the planting season. Fertilizer prices had doubled from last year. In China, the price of potash — potassium-rich salt used as fertilizer — is up 86% from a year earlier. Nitrogen fertilizer prices have climbed 39% and phosphorus fertilizer is up 10%.
“I think it’s going to be a pretty expensive crop, no matter what you’re putting in the ground, from fertilizer to fuel, labor, electrical and everything else,” said Donald Flannery, executive director of the Maine Potato Board. India, meanwhile, is seeking more fertilizer imports from Israel, Oman, Canada and Saudi Arabia to make up for lost shipments from Russia and Belarus.
Malaysia Latest News, Malaysia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Russian war worsens fertilizer crunch, risking food suppliesKIAMBU COUNTY, Kenya (AP) — Monica Kariuki is about ready to give up on farming. What is driving her off her 10 acres of land outside Nairobi isn’t bad weather, pests or blight — the traditional agricultural curses — but fertilizer: It costs too much.
Read more »
Putin's war fuels tensions in Baltic states with Russian-speaking populationsThis town of about 55,000 on the border with Russia could be at the edge of a new Iron Curtain created by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. It’s a place between two worlds, where Russia and Russian identity meets Estonia and the West.
Read more »
US doubts new Russian war chief can end Moscow's flounderingA gross trick used to steal from people who need a ride. Rideshare passengers stuck with fake fines. Investigator Amy Davis has the ripoff warning and what you need to know about your next ride.
Read more »
Russian reporter who protested war on the air has new job with German news companyThe Russian television reporter who famously held up a poster during a live prime-time news broadcast protesting the war in Ukraine has a new job — with a major German media company.
Read more »
US doubts new Russian war chief can end Moscow’s flounderingAccording to U.S. officials, the new commander has a record of brutality against civilians in Syria and other war theaters.
Read more »
U.S. doubts new Russian war chief can end Moscow's flounderingRussia has tapped a new Ukraine war commander to take centralized control of the next phase of battle after its costly failures in the opening campaign and carnage for Ukrainian civilians
Read more »