AlexandriaFertilizer prices in Egypt have risen to historic levels with a scarcity of supply of all types, causing repeated increases in the costs of producing agricultural crops, threatening huge losses for farmers, in addition to imposing new burdens on large sectors of citizens, especially those with limited income.
A number of agricultural landowners are complaining about the non-disbursement of summer crop season quotas of subsidized fertilizers, the price of which has jumped nearly three-fold in the free market in a matter of months, after production companies withdrew from offering their products to agricultural associations and the Agricultural Bank due to the natural gas shortage crisis and the rise in global energy prices.
Despite the Ministry of Agriculture announcing that it is gradually working to solve the problem, a number of parliamentarians submitted briefing requests to the government calling on it to set a timetable to end the fertilizer crisis and farmers’ problems with clear and specific steps, procedures and decisions.
warning
Traders have warned of an increase in the inflation rate in local markets after the prices of fruits and vegetables rose to record levels as a result of several factors, including climate change and rising fertilizer prices, which are increases that will harm citizens’ purchasing power.
Engineer Marwa Youssef, owner of agricultural lands in Alexandria Governorate (north), confirms that she has not received her full share of agricultural fertilizers for the second month in a row after the decline in government allocations in agricultural associations, which threatens the summer crops she grows.
Speaking to Al Jazeera Net, she said that the fertilizer shortage crisis began several months ago, but that recently its impact on farmers has become more severe due to the scarcity of supply, which has forced them to buy what they need from the black (parallel) market at high prices.
She warned that the continued decline in government support for fertilizers and their failure to reach farmers will affect the dates of fertilizing the land at the specified times, which will cause a decrease in production and a decline in the level of all crops, especially summer crops that need large quantities of fertilizers compared to others in the winter season, and the resulting losses that increase their burdens.
Black market prey
The General Secretary of the Farmers Syndicate, Hussein Abdel Rahman Abu Saddam, says that the agricultural sector is experiencing a major crisis due to the shortage of fertilizers and the high prices of fertilizers, which are considered a strategic product that cannot be dispensed with, especially in old lands that are cultivated more than 3 times a year and are not suitable without them.
Speaking to Al Jazeera Net, he pointed out that the government’s efforts are not yet sufficient to solve the fertilizer crisis, in light of the production companies’ refusal to commit to supplying about 4 million tons to agricultural associations and the Agricultural Bank, which may cause other crises and disastrous repercussions on the agricultural sector, whether through a shortage and decline in the export proceeds of agricultural products or an increase in the prices of goods in the markets.
He pointed out that in light of the unavailability of the necessary quantities of subsidized fertilizers in agricultural associations, farmers are currently resorting to the free market, whose prices have risen to unprecedented levels, as a ton of urea fertilizer reaches 21 thousand pounds (426.84 dollars), which is more than 15 thousand pounds (304.89 dollars) more than subsidized fertilizer.
Abu Saddam added that many farmers, in the event of a loss, will be forced to reduce the area of cultivated land, in light of the high cost of rent, irrigation, fertilizers and agricultural machinery, and thus the supply of agricultural products and crops will decrease and food prices in the markets will rise for citizens.
Farmer Mohamed Hashem Al-Qalaawi believes that the crisis lies in the poor distribution of subsidized fertilizers, which are distributed to some farmers and not others according to their proximity to officials, and which may also leak and be sold on the black market at prices several times their original price.
He confirmed in a comment to Al Jazeera Net that the shortage of all types of fertilizers and the farmers’ rush to demand them to stop the decline in production has tripled their prices within a month, so the majority of farmers are forced to resort to buying from the black market, whose prices vary from one place to another and according to the merchant, demand for him, and the needs of his region.
adulterated fertilizers
Adel Al-Falaki, a tenant in West Alexandria, says that there is a spread of adulterated fertilizer products, and other alternatives that farmers resort to due to the unprecedented rise in the prices of production requirements, in which the concentration of some types of liquid single fertilizers, such as liquid nitrogen or liquid urea, decreases, which harms the crop and threatens the health of the consumer.
The fertilizer crisis has also cast its shadow on agricultural products in the markets, as Talat Hamdan, a merchant specializing in selling fruits and vegetables in one of Alexandria’s neighborhoods, says, pointing out that prices have risen significantly in the recent period and that a wave of other increases is expected after the cost of producing the agricultural crop increases for the farmer.
He pointed out that they are one of the most affected sectors in light of the general decline in demand for vegetable and fruit markets as a result of the high inflation rate in the country and the decline in the economic situation of citizens in general, according to him.
No profits
The crisis of Al-Falaki and other traders comes in light of the announcement by fertilizer factories to suspend production and not meet market needs due to the government’s recent halt in supplying them with natural gas, at a time when demand for fertilizer for summer crops has increased, leading to an increase in fertilizer prices in the free market, according to Dr. Alaa Hasaballah, an economic expert and member of the board of directors of the Scientific Association for Food Industries in Alexandria.
The economic expert told Al Jazeera Net that many farmers, in light of the high prices and the traders’ exploitation of the situation, will not be able to make any profits, which has forced some to reduce fertilizing crops as a result of the scarcity of fertilizers in the market or the inability to provide the money needed to buy them after the price of a ton reached more than 20,000 pounds ($406.52) in the free market.
He added, “Despite the current crisis, fertilizers are considered one of the important strategic industries in Egypt, due to their importance related to agriculture, in addition to their dollar export revenues. The total Egyptian production of fertilizers in 2023 amounted to approximately 8 million tons of nitrogen, and 4 million tons of phosphate.”
In this context, MP Khaled Tantawi called on the government in general and the Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation in particular to quickly intervene to find urgent solutions to the crisis of fertilizer shortages and high prices, and to work to quickly resolve it with clear and specific steps, procedures and decisions.
Tantawi stressed, in a question he directed to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Counselor Dr. Hanfy Gebaly – to be directed to the Prime Minister and the Ministers of Agriculture and Land Reclamation and the Public Business Sector – that the fertilizer crisis has become recurring every year, and urgent intervention is necessary to control the distribution system in a way that contributes to the support reaching those who deserve it.
In contrast, Ali Awda, head of the General Association for Agricultural Credit, one of the main entities distributing fertilizers, said in statements that the main companies producing fertilizers in Egypt are Abu Qir, Misr, Helwan, Alexandria, Kima and Mobco, and all of them are committed to quotas set for the benefit of the General Association for Credit, amounting to 156 thousand tons of fertilizers per month, in addition to additional quantities committed by smaller companies.
Awda added that with the shutdown of these companies’ factories – due to the lack of gas supplies – the fertilizer shortage crisis in the governorates escalated, which greatly affected farmers and the agricultural sector, and caused prices to rise. However, things have started to improve recently, as Abu Qir and Mobco companies are seeking to fulfill a large part of their obligations by the beginning of next month.
Breakthrough is near
For his part, the head of the Agricultural Services Sector at the Ministry of Agriculture, Dr. Abbas Al-Shennawy, promised a quick solution to the fertilizer shortage crisis, which resulted from the decrease in quantities arriving at the receiving authorities at the Ministry of Agriculture, due to the decrease in gas quantities for factories during the past period.
Al-Shennawy explained that the ministry is carefully distributing the available fertilizers to the congestion areas, as it distributes 6,000 tons daily, noting that although the total quotas scheduled to be supplied from fertilizer factories to distribution agencies are 257,000 tons per month, the maximum quantity that actually arrived did not exceed 110,000 tons last June.
