Thanks cutworm!

How do you think that this might affect you?

Cutworm. That seems irrational to me. Why would a RR company deny transportation of necessary goods? Especially since RR business is "struggling"? Connecting the dots.

A spokes person for the US Government tells us that a fertilizer shortage is good, because it forces farmers to transition to natural solutions, such as manure and compost.  

https://twitter.com/RNCResearch/status/1520786557472583680?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1520786557472583680%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.infowars.com%2F

This reminds me of Europe, where government officials have told their people to buy warmer sweaters, because many people won’t be able to afford heating their homes next winter, due to the Ukraine war.

Is our government telling us to eat less?

Coming to think of it…. I am 10 lbs overweight… maybe there is a plus in it for me.

Fertilizer prices have been going up since early 2021.  The article below describes how the current war will affect food production worldwide.

https://www.cnbc.com/2022/04/06/a-fertilizer-shortage-worsened-by-war-in-ukraine-is-driving-up-global-food-prices-and-scarcity.html

Farmers in South America have already stated that they will use 25% less fertilizers than usual… with an expected drop in yield.

While the above link focuses on grain prices, another site (can’t post the link here) writes about coffee.  Coffee farmers in Brazil, Nicaragua, Guatemala, and Costa Rica are expected to also use less fertilizer. A cooperative in Costa Rica predicts coffee output could slip 15% next year because of soaring fertilizer costs.

Farmers in China, India, Bangladesh, Indonesia, and Vietnam — the largest rice-producing countries — are spreading less fertilizer and predict a 10% reduction in output, about 36 million tons of rice, or enough food to feed a half billion people.

Mike, not absolutely sure but I think (hope)most of my fertilizer comes here by barge. But the west is a different story. 

Mark, there is a lot of unconnected dots to this story. Just like not pumping more fuel here in US, or increasing use of ethanol at a time of possible global food shortages? Maybe the RR is trying to force out private ownership of RR cars? Don't know. 

Also I noticed that some local farmers are worried that there will not be enough nitrogen for everything in a timely manor. 

Thanks for the great comments.

There is clearly, another element to this:

Another secret about fossil fuels: Haber Bosch process-fertilizers feeding the planet using natural gas-doubling food production/crop yields. September 2019

https://www.marketforum.com/forum/topic/39215/

This Chemical Is in Short Supply, and the Whole World Feels It

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/06/business/urea-fertilizer-food-prices.html

One big reason for surging fertilizer prices is surging prices of coal and natural gas. The urea in your urine is produced in the liver. The industrial kind is made through a century-old process that uses natural gas or gas derived from coal to produce ammonia, which is then used to synthesize urea.

“If we see coal prices and natural gas prices staying at the levels we are seeing currently, then we are certainly going to see higher food prices,” he said. “There’s no question about it.”

China is a linchpin of the global fertilizer trade. The country accounts for about a tenth of the world’s urea-based fertilizer exports and a third of exports of diammonium phosphate, another type of crop nutrient, according to the World Bank.

As prices of fuel and fertilizer began rising this year, China’s cabinet in June authorized billions of dollars in subsidies and other support for farmers. The next month, the country’s major fertilizer producers met with the state planning agency and agreed to halt exports.

In the fall, soaring electricity demand led the southwestern province of Yunnan, a key phosphate producer, to order drastic production cuts by energy-hungry industries, including fertilizer. And in October, China’s customs authority imposed extra inspection requirements on exports of 29 fertilizers and related products.

Question is........Why doesn't the US produce much more of the fertilizer that it needs to grow food?

Fertilizer Manufacturing Industry in the US  - Market Research Report

                                    Updated: November 30, 2021                                                                                                                                                                                                                               

Plant food: Favorable energy costs will likely support increased industry participation

https://www.ibisworld.com/united-states/market-research-reports/fertilizer-manufacturing-industry/

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