Georgia farmers face fertilizer crisis as Iran blocks key shipping route

SYLVANIA, Ga. (WTOC) — Iran’s blockade of the Strait of Hormuz is sending shockwaves through southeast Georgia’s farm country, where corn planting season is underway and farmers say fertilizer prices are already surging nearly 50%.

The Strait of Hormuz is a critical global shipping route for urea, a key ingredient in nitrogen fertilizer. With the waterway now blocked, supplies are tightening fast, and Georgia farmers say they are running out of time.

“The southeast will consume 60% of our yearly needs for nitrogen products in the next 45 days,” said Knapp Boddiford, a Sylvania-area farmer.

That 45-day window is critical. Corn, cotton, and peanut farmers across the region are in the heart of planting season, the period when nitrogen fertilizer demand peaks and farmers have little flexibility to delay or substitute.

For some, the math simply isn’t working. Boddiford says farmers are being forced to rethink their planting plans entirely.

“A lot of people are having to change planting intentions. A lot of folks that were intended to plant corn are backing it up, budgets are not working with their banks to be able to grow this crop,” he said.

“In some cases, some folks are considering laying land out and not farming it,” Boddiford continued.

The financial strain extends beyond fertilizer. Boddiford says fuel costs are also climbing, adding another layer of pressure on already tight margins.

“We’re burning 100 gallons of fuel a day, so that’s already a $100-a-day cost increase just in fuel,” he said.

The back-to-back hits come as farmers are already dealing with storm damage and severe drought conditions across the region this year.

With cotton and peanut season just weeks away, farmers warn the pressure will only grow. And if costs continue to climb, Boddiford says the consequences will reach beyond the farm.

“Something is going to have to change to be able to keep your Georgia farmers afloat,” he said.

Farmers warn those rising costs could eventually make their way to consumers at the grocery store, as producers pass on higher expenses through the supply chain.