The Fertilizer Oligopoly: The Case for Global Antitrust Enforcement

AAI Working Paper No. 13-05: by Author: C. Robert Taylor and Diana L. Moss Fertilizers are a critical input in the agricultural sector where industrial farming is heavily dependent on external inputs of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium or potash. A history of supra-competitive pricing by the few, large global producers of fertilizer inputs – coupled with characteristics that make the market conducive to anticompetitive coordination (i.e., collusion) – raise significant competitive concerns. This working paper qualitatively and quantitatively Read More …

Federal Trade Commission Turns Deaf Ear to OCM Calls for Investigation of Global Fertilizer Cartel

For Immediate Release CONTACT: C. Robert Taylor (334) 844-1957 Mike Callicrate (785) 332-8218 October 9, 2012 Lincoln, NE – During the past five years, profit margins by the dominant fertilizer corporations have soared as high as 60 percent even while corporate reports showed substantial excess production capacity, blatant signs of price-fixing and collusive behavior, according to alarms raised by the Organization for Competitive Markets. Despite the red flags, the Federal Trade Commission, the government body charged with insuring Read More …