The effects of Hurricane Milton on the U.S. fertilizer market could send a ripple through the ag community. StoneX Vice President of Fertilizer Josh Linville calls Hurricane Milton a worst-case-scenario event for U.S. fertilizer production. “This is one of those that if you were to sit there and ask a meteorologist, fill out and theorize for me, what’s the worst possible thing that could happen? I think it’s Milton.” According to Linville the timing of the storm could not be any worse for an already tight fertilizer market. “When we talk about US phosphate production, we are largely talking about Florida phosphate production. That is where the vast majority of it sits, and several of the biggest mines sit in a direct line east of Tampa. So, the storm is coming, and it is barreling right for that area.” Linville worries that farmers won’t have enough time to make adjustments before a November 1 start to fertilizer application. “For most of the Midwest, November 1 is go-time. That’s application time. If you load a ship right now, it’s into the U.S. and doesn’t reach our shores for 30 days for most points out there. Then you’ve got to get it from the shores inland to the farmer. Now we’re talking a December start.”
