Why It Matters

A Congressional Research Service (CRS) report on fertilizer transportation, published Sept. 4, shows that domestic supply constraints are undermining the Trump Administration's ambitious reshoring agenda. The report highlights how regulatory barriers, aging infrastructure, and insurance mandates are colliding to limit the U.S. fertilizer industry's capacity to serve American farmers, even as the administration commits billions to expand domestic production.

The Secretary of Agriculture has stated a goal of "reshoring" all fertilizer production to the United States, backed by over $1 billion in loan guarantees for potash mining in central Michigan and $500 million in fiscal year 2026 grants for new fertilizer plant construction. But building new factories means nothing if the supply chains that move fertilizer to farms cannot absorb the output.

The Big Picture

Fertilizer moves by several methods in the U.S., each facing distinct pressures. Trucks handle roughly half of all fertilizer by tonnage, primarily for short-haul delivery to farms and retail facilities. A critical 1,700-mile pipeline runs from Louisiana north through the Midwest carrying anhydrous ammonia, a toxic-by-inhalation material used as a fertilizer and an input to manufacture other fertilizers. Oceangoing coastal shipping is severely constrained by the Jones Act.

The Jones Act requires that cargo shipped between two U.S. ports be carried on U.S.-built, U.S.-crewed vessels. However, there are no U.S.-built dry bulk ships capable of moving phosphate rock domestically, and no U.S.-built stainless steel chemical tankers despite the foreign fleet having over 1,400 such vessels. At least one domestic phosphate manufacturer now imports phosphate rock from Peru to its Louisiana plant rather than shipping from its own Florida mines because foreign-built dry bulk ships are far cheaper and more available.

The Trump Administration issued a five-month Jones Act waiver from March 18 to Aug. 17, 2026, to facilitate fertilizer and commodity transport disrupted by the Iran conflict. The waiver was later extended to Nov. 14, 2026, for petroleum products. It enabled at least ten fertilizer-related domestic shipments on foreign-built vessels.

Railroads have dramatically increased insurance requirements for shippers of toxic-by-inhalation materials like anhydrous ammonia from $10 million to $100 million in general liability coverage. Truck transport received temporary relief May 26 after the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration issued a 90-day waiver of hours-of-service rules for truck drivers transporting fertilizers in certain states.

The Bottom Line

The report notes that issues with rail service and domestic coastal shipping may limit the efficacy of increasing domestic production for domestic users of fertilizers. Without action on the Jones Act, rail insurance mandates, or pipeline cybersecurity harmonization, the fertilizer industry's ability to move product to market may become the binding constraint, not the supply of the material itself.

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