URGENT action is needed to alleviate pressure on farmers as fertiliser prices rise dramatically, an MEP has claimed.

Cynthia Ní Mhurchú (FF) called on the European Commission to temporarily exempt fertilisers from its new carbon tariff scheme as the escalating conflict in the Middle East affects supply and costs.

Fertiliser costs rose 11.6% in the year to January – ahead of the energy price spike as a result of the closure of the Strait of Hormuz – and farmers are now facing potential supply shortages.

Ireland South MEP Ní Mhurchú called for fertilisers to be temporarily suspended from the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism, which is effectively a tax on imports of carbon-intensive products into the EU, including fertiliser, that has operated since the start of the year.

She met with the Commission’s tax services in December 2025 to raise the case for excluding fertilisers from the CBAM mechanism given the significant price pressures already faced by farmers.

Following this meeting, the EU Commission announced that fertilisers would only bare a mark up of 1%, contrasting all other sectors under CBAM which face mark ups of 10% on price.

Recent geopolitical developments have added fuel to the fire in fertiliser markets.

The closure of the Strait of Hormuz — a critical global shipping route — has halted fertiliser shipments from major producers including Iran, Qatar and Saudi Arabia, countries that together account for a large part of the global fertiliser trade. Global urea prices have increased by as much as 37%.

Ms Ní Mhurchu warned: ‘The war in Iran is a clear supply-side risk for Irish agriculture.

Any disruption to global fertiliser supplies will quickly feed through to higher costs for farmers, putting additional pressure on already tight margins.

‘We cannot have a farming system that is dependent on inputs coming from volatile regions of the world because when supply chains are disrupted, the cost ultimately works its way through the food chain and onto supermarket shelve.’

Ní Mhurchú has written to EU Agri-Commissioner Hansen echoing the call from multiple EU countries for an immediate suspension of the CBAM mechanism on fertilisers until the situation in the Middle East is resolved.

The Commission has already implemented legislative changes that would allow it to suspend the tariff in the event of ‘serious and unforeseen circumstances’ harming the bloc’s internal market.