US Senators Push Fertilizer Reserve Bill

· Legislation Introduced: Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (NY) and Agriculture Committee Democrat Amy Klobuchar (MN) introduced the Strategic Fertilizer Reserve Act.

· Purpose: To shield farmers from fertilizer price spikes caused by tariffs, energy costs, and war-related disruptions.

· USDA Role:

o Study feasibility of creating a Strategic Fertilizer Reserve.

o Examine size, location, price stabilization, safety, risk management, and withdrawal protocols.

· Governance: If feasible, a Board of Directors with agriculture community representatives would oversee operations, with regular reports to Congress.

· Context: Farmers face a 40% rise in fertilizer costs, higher tariffs, closed markets, and increasing bankruptcies.

[ABS News Service/24.09.2026]

With US farmers reeling from the effects of higher tariffs and energy prices, Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (NY) is introducing legislation to protect farmers from rising fertilizer prices.

The bill, introduced with Agriculture Committee ranking Democrat Amy Klobuchar (Minn), would take steps towards establishing a Strategic Fertilizer Reserve.

“Thanks to Trump’s affordability crisis, farmers are already operating on razor-thin margins.

They shouldn’t also have to absorb a 40 percent spike in fertilizer costs because Donald Trump plunged the country into another war,” Sen. Schumer said.

“Between the war in Iran and increased tariffs, rising input costs like fertilizer continue to erode farmers' profitability,” Sen. Klobuchar added.

The Strategic Fertilizer Reserve Act would:

Instruct the Agriculture Department o study the feasibility of creating a Strategic Fertilizer Reserve, which would protect farmers from future fertilizer price volatility and supply chain disruptions.

Direct USDA to examine factors such as size, location(s), price stabilization, safety and risk management, withdrawal protocols and more.

Establish, upon a positive finding from USDA, a Board of Directors to oversee the Reserve’s operations, including representatives from across the agriculture community and require regular reporting to Congress on the functioning of the Reserve.

Speaking on the Senate floor, Sen. Schumer said that farm bankruptcies are increasing because of the higher tariffs and closed markets that farmers face.