PARLIAMENTARY WRITTEN QUESTION
Agriculture: Fertilisers (13 December 2022)

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department is taking steps to help ensure the availability of (a) urea and (b) other fertilisers for domestic food production in (i) 2023 and (ii) 2024.

Asked by:
Dame Harriett Baldwin (Conservative)

Britain sources both nitrogen-based and non-nitrogen fertiliser from a wide range of countries and produces ammonium nitrate (AN) fertiliser domestically. While global fertiliser prices have risen, the supply chain providing imports of fertiliser to the UK has remained dynamic in sourcing products. CF Fertilisers continues to produce ammonium nitrate fertiliser from its plant at Billingham

We are continuing to monitor the security and stability of fertiliser and other supply chains, and work closely with colleagues across government and devolved administrations as well as industry figures

Defra hosts regular Fertiliser Industry Taskforce meetings with devolved administrations and key industry figures including the National Farmers Union, the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board and the Agricultural Industries Confederation

To support farmers the Basic Payment Scheme payment is being made in 2 instalments to give farmers greater financial fluidity. Other actions taken include changes to guidance on farmers using manures, increased grants for farmers and growers, boosting research and development

Indicative data suggest that farmers have made a slight shift to using more urea based fertilisers this year, because of higher AN prices. Urea fertilisers emit greater amount of ammonia, after spreading, than other inorganic fertilisers so care must be taken to optimise application for agronomic and environmental benefit. The Government will monitor the success of industry action on reducing ammonia emissions from use of urea fertilisers and if regulation is needed this is likely to require use of ammonia inhibitors rather than a complete ban on urea

Defra recently laid a Statutory Instrument (SI) to enable continued ammonium nitrate supply and importation, by extending the current provision allowing use of both EU and UK laboratories for Detonation Resistance Testing

Support in the form of guidance from fertiliser suppliers and agricultural organisations such as National Farmers Union can be found from various public sources. Furthermore, AHDB recently published reports commissioned by Defra, modelling the potential impact on arable and grassland yields of fertiliser price rises, and have also published a new fertiliser price dashboard.

Answered by:
Sir Mark Spencer (Conservative)
16 January 2023