Soil, fertilizer values and carbon programs
Mar 13, 2025
Winter 2025 has been another one for the books. If there is a good time to go without moisture, the winter is as good of a time as any, unless you enjoy riding snowmobiles. With little to no snowfall so far this year and some fairly cold days, we are getting some benefit from the frost going deep into the soil to help with compaction. In areas of need, this can be beneficial for better yields moving forward.
With the grain markets increasing recently, an expectation of increased corn acres, tariffs, and global demand, fertilizer prices are on the rise as we continue through spring. Fortunately, corn prices have kept up to make the price of fertilizer per bushel of corn an OK buy. The final number of corn acres will be a big driver of fertilizer values past this spring.
One thing for sure about this upcoming growing season is that it will somehow be different from the last few years. With the challenge of not having new active ingredients, killing certain weeds continues to be more difficult to control. We will continue to add more rates and active ingredients to each acre to try to have the best possible weed control.
With the new regime change in the government, our sustainability acres are uncertain at the moment. The USDA has paused payments, and other carbon program payments are being paused. The 45Z program is also still up in the air as we await details to bring value to growers. Please reach out to our IAS team to get updates on how your acres that you have signed through IAS are being impacted.
We look forward to the opportunity to work with you on your remaining business for this growing season, and servicing you this spring. Please have a safe and enjoyable rest of the winter.
With the grain markets increasing recently, an expectation of increased corn acres, tariffs, and global demand, fertilizer prices are on the rise as we continue through spring. Fortunately, corn prices have kept up to make the price of fertilizer per bushel of corn an OK buy. The final number of corn acres will be a big driver of fertilizer values past this spring.
One thing for sure about this upcoming growing season is that it will somehow be different from the last few years. With the challenge of not having new active ingredients, killing certain weeds continues to be more difficult to control. We will continue to add more rates and active ingredients to each acre to try to have the best possible weed control.
With the new regime change in the government, our sustainability acres are uncertain at the moment. The USDA has paused payments, and other carbon program payments are being paused. The 45Z program is also still up in the air as we await details to bring value to growers. Please reach out to our IAS team to get updates on how your acres that you have signed through IAS are being impacted.
We look forward to the opportunity to work with you on your remaining business for this growing season, and servicing you this spring. Please have a safe and enjoyable rest of the winter.
Tim Krausman
Tim began his career in the Agronomy business more than two decades ago and joined Innovative Ag Services in 2002. He oversees fertilizer, chemical, and seed procurement, along with the Precision Ag Department, while managing P&L responsibilities for the agronomy division.
Throughout his career, Tim has held roles of increasing responsibility, including seed specialist, seed manager, and agronomy department manager. He earned his Ag Business degree from Iowa State University.