In the News

When food prices go up and someone points to fertilizer as the reason, the USDA's own data tells a different story. Part 3 follows the food dollar from the farm gate to the grocery store, and finds that fertilizer costs never leave the farm.

When the news says "farmers are hurting," it treats American agriculture as one group. It isn't. Part 2 breaks down who is actually exposed to the nitrogen price spike, from the 52% of farms that are largely insulated to the 15–20% of row croppers who ran out of room to plan.

The U.S. produces 90% of its own nitrogen from domestic natural gas. So why are fertilizer prices tracking a conflict over a shipping lane the product never used? Part 1 of a three-part series tracing the fertilizer pricing system from the wholesale market in New Orleans to the retail quote at the local elevator.