Ní Mhurchú has called on the European Commission to temporarily exempt fertilisers from its new carbon tariff scheme as fertiliser prices rise dramatically.
Irish farmers are facing rising fertiliser costs and potential supply shortages following the escalating conflict in the Middle East. Ireland South MEP, Cynthia Ní Mhurchú, has called for fertilisers to be temporarily suspended from the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism. The Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism is effectively a tax on imports of carbon-intensive products into the EU, including fertiliser, that has operated since the start of the year.
Ní Mhurchú met with the Commission’s Tax services in December of 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 markup of 1%, contrasting all other sectors under CBAM which face markups 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%.
According to Ní Mhurchú, the situation in the middle east highlights the vulnerability of Ireland’s heavy reliance on imported fertilisers such as nitrogen – in particular when you consider that Russia is also a large supplier of fertiliser products.
According to Ní Mhurchú,
“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”, she said. “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 shelves”
Ní Mhurchú has written to EU Agri- Commissioner Hansen echoing the call from multiple EU countries asking for an immediate suspension of the CBAM mechanism on fertilisers until the situation in the Middle East is resolved.
The EU Commission have already implemented legislative changes that would allow them to suspend the tariff in the event of “serious and unforeseen circumstances” harming the bloc’s internal market.
ENDS
