DTN Retail Fertilizer Trends

OMAHA (DTN) -- Retail fertilizer prices were higher across the board for the third week of December 2020. It's the second week in a row that all eight major fertilizers were higher than the previous month.

Three fertilizers were up a significant amount, which DTN designates as 5% or more. MAP, potash and anhydrous were all 7% more expensive compared to the prior month. MAP had an average price of $522/ton, up $34; potash $360/ton, up $24; and anhydrous $450/ton, up $28.

The remaining five fertilizers were all just slightly higher in price compared to the prior month. DAP had an average price of $466/ton, up $11; urea $361/ton, up $3; 10-34-0 $463/ton, up $8; UAN28 $210/ton, up $3; and UAN32 $253/ton, up $4.

On a price per pound of nitrogen basis, the average urea price was at $0.39/lb.N, anhydrous $0.27/lb.N, UAN28 $0.38/lb.N and UAN32 $0.39/lb.N.

The end of the year is when many farmers will buy inputs for year-end tax planning purposes. Among the items they will buy is fertilizer for the next growing season.

Don Batie, a farmer in Lexington, Nebraska, told DTN he is planning on booking fertilizer before the end of 2020. At the top of his list is UAN32, his main source of nitrogen fertilizer, and probably some 10-34-0 fertilizer as well.

Batie farms in central Nebraska's fertile Platte River Valley with soils that have a shallow water table, thus allowing fertilizer to move easily with rainfall. Because of this, fertilizer is only applied in the spring or during the growing season.

"We have no fall application at all," Batie said. "It's legal to apply after a certain point in the fall here, but nobody does."

There is also very little fieldwork done in the fall. Cattle graze all of the corn stalks in the region for most of the winter months, he said.

Despite no fall fertilizer application season, Batie said in his operation he is set up to apply fertilizer quickly in the spring.

Retail fertilizer prices continue to be mostly lower in price from a year ago but there are a couple exceptions. DAP is 5% higher while MAP is 14% more expensive compared to last year.

10-34-0 is 1% less expensive, urea is 4% lower, potash is 5% less expensive, anhydrous is 8% lower, UAN32 is 9% less expensive and UAN28 is 12% lower from last year at this time.

DTN collects roughly 1,700 retail fertilizer bids from 310 retailer locations weekly. Not all fertilizer prices change each week. Prices are subject to change at any time.

DTN Pro Grains subscribers can find current retail fertilizer price in the DTN Fertilizer Index on the Fertilizer page under Farm Business.

Retail fertilizer charts dating back to 2010 are available in the DTN fertilizer segment. The charts included cost of N/lb., DAP, MAP, potash, urea, 10-34-0, anhydrous, UAN28 and UAN32.

Russ Quinn can be reached at [email protected]

Follow him on Twitter @RussQuinnDTN

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