RE: Fertiliser Shortage27 Apr 2026 12:57
Brazil Races to Rebuild Its Fertilizer Industry After Decades of Neglect
By Iolanda Fonseca April 17, 2026
Key Points
Brazil is the world’s largest fertilizer importer, consuming roughly 47 million tonnes annually while producing only about 7 million domestically — an 88% import dependency that the Ukraine war, Chinese export bans, and the Iran-Hormuz crisis have each exposed but none have fixed.
Petrobras approved the US$1 billion revival of the UFN-III fertilizer plant in Três Lagoas on April 13, 2026 — together with reactivated plants in Bahia, Sergipe, and Paraná, this could reduce nitrogen import dependency from 88% to approximately 65% by 2029, according to the FUP petroleum workers’ federation.
President Lula told Germany’s Der Spiegel that his predecessor “closed fertilizer factories” and that Brazil is now “trying to rebuild” its own industry — remarks timed to his visit to the Hannover Messe industrial fair, where he will pitch Brazil’s biofuels and agribusiness credentials to European investors.