The Commission’s Paradox: Fertiliser Sanctions Threaten European Agriculture Amid Competitiveness Strategy

On the very day the European Commission unveils its strategic compass for European competitiveness, it has simultaneously introduced a proposal to impose sanctions on Russian and Belarusian fertilisers—a move that will severely impact agricultural production and competitiveness. Without a clear diversification strategy, European farmers will soon find themselves up against the wall.

For years, Europe has struggled with a fertiliser production insufficient to meet demand, making imports unavoidable. This situation has only worsened following the closure of several fertiliser plants across EU Member States. The implementation of the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) by the EU will also further increase costs for both domestic production and third-country suppliers entering the EU market.

While we understand the legitimacy of the geopolitical reasons driving the Commission to act, the agricultural sector must face the economic consequences of these decisions. European farmers currently have no guarantees that the fertiliser shortfall will be offset by increased domestic production at a competitive price—a key argument raised by supporters of the proposed sanctions. These measures would drive fertiliser prices up by at least €40/45 per tonne for the next cropping season. This would place additional financial pressure on farming operations already grappling with a highly challenging economic climate. The consequences for agricultural production, competitiveness, and farmers’ incomes could be catastrophic.

The Commission’s proposal falls short in many respects for EU farming communities, whether in relations to the very high tariffs to be applied from July 2025, the gradual approach to sanctions or the proposed temporary suspensions based on 2024 prices, which were already higher than pre-war level. What is even more concerning is that the Commission’s proposal includes no medium- or long-term measures to offer prospects for the sector, whether it be in diversifying supply sources or the following urgent mitigating measures:

• Eliminate anti-dumping duties on imports of urea, ammonium nitrate, and UAN mixtures originating from the USA and Trinidad and Tobago.
• Suspend conventional duties on imports of urea, UAN, DAP, MAP, and NPK (codes 3102 10, 3102 80, 3105 30, 3105 40, and 3105 20 from the tariff nomenclature).
• Grant derogations under the Nitrates Directive to allow the use of processed livestock effluents (RENURE – Recovered Nitrogen from ManURE and certain digestates) beyond the current limit of 170 kg N/hectare.

Behind the complexity of this dossier lies a fundamental issue: the future of European agriculture and the EU’s food security. Copa and Cogeca urge the Member States and the European Parliament to address this issue swiftly. We also count on new Agriculture Commissioner, Christophe Hansen, to quickly step up on this issue to find concrete solutions to avoid what may already be shaping up as a new agricultural crisis.