The National Association of Fertilizer Manufacturers (ANFFE) warns that the conflict in the Middle East is having a “very significant” impact on both energy markets and the global fertilizer supply chain. The Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most strategic maritime passages for the trade of oil, gas and fertilizers, has become a critical hotspot whose instability poses a direct threat to European agriculture.
According to data from the International Fertilizer Association (IFA), nearly 18.5 million tonnes of urea passed through this route in 2024 alone—a key volume for global supply. The Persian Gulf region —Iran, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain— also concentrates a substantial share of global production: 23% of ammonia trade, 34% of urea and 18% of ammonium phosphates. In addition, roughly half of the world’s sulfur trade—an essential raw material for phosphate fertilizers—also moves through this corridor.
Although Spain has imported very little urea from these countries in recent years, ANFFE stresses that fertilizer markets are global, and any disruption in a strategic area can trigger an immediate effect on prices and product availability.
A European industry already strained by high energy costs
The war has worsened the situation for a European industry that was already operating under heavy pressure due to soaring energy prices, among the highest in the world. In Spain, manufacturing companies are making “great efforts” to maintain production activity and ensure supply to farmers, despite rising energy and raw material costs.
However, ANFFE warns that if the situation continues or escalates, disruptions in trade routes could seriously affect industrial activity, potentially leading to the temporary shutdown of production plants. This would put fertilizer supply for the upcoming sowing season at risk.
An essential input for food security
The association recalls that mineral fertilizers are essential to feeding the world: roughly half of the global population depends on crops grown with mineral fertilizers. For this reason, the current situation once again highlights the strategic importance of maintaining a strong and resilient national fertilizer industry.
Ensuring farmers’ access to these inputs is key to maintaining stable and competitive agricultural production in the long term. ANFFE stresses the need to strengthen support for farmers and reinforce the resilience of the fertilizer industry, especially in such an uncertain geopolitical context.
