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Inflation:
Continued from Page 4
landing on the agriculture industry this year.
Phillips pointed out that everything that
he orders to operate his ranch, and every-
thing he sends off to market, including cat-
tle, makes the journey powered by fuel, and
usually diesel.
Fuel prices, and in particular for natural
gas, have direct effects on the cost of fer-
tilizer, which uses large amounts of natural
gas. U.S. natural gas prices are at a 14-year
high, according to recent reporting in The
Financial Times.
Mark Ward, whose family grows pota-
toes, wheat, peppermint and alfalfa in Baker
Valley, said inflation is offsetting, or worse,
the benefits from rising prices for some farm
products.
“The wheat price has doubled, I hear
from people,” Ward said. “But so has my
fertilizer cost. So has my cost of diesel.
The only thing that’s been stable is elec-
tricity. Something’s got to change on the
production costs. We can’t sustain this. It
makes you wonder how you can stay in
business. It’s scary.”
“IT IS GOING TO BE A REALLY
CHALLENGING YEAR FOR GUYS
THAT HAVE CATTLE AND RAISE
HAY WITH THOSE ESCALATING
COSTS.”
— Todd Nash, Wallowa County rancher and president of the Oregon Cattlemen’s Association
Ward cited as an example the cost of
planting and raising potatoes, a vital crop
for his family’s operation.
Last year it cost $3,600 per acre.
This year it’s over $5,000.
“It’s getting when the risk is greater than
the reward,” Ward said.
Fertilizer costs spike
Costs of a majority of national retail fer-
tilizers were lower in June than May, accord-
ing to prices tracked by agricultural data
analysis service DTN. This was the first time
since the third week of November 2020 that
most fertilizers were lower.
Six fertilizers’ prices were lower than
May, but none was down a substantial
amount. DTN designates a move of 5% or
more as significant.
Average price for urea was $979 per ton
and anhydrous $1,529.
Two fertilizers were slightly more expen-
sive in June than in May. The average price
of UAN28 was $633 per ton and UAN32
$731, an all-time high.
On a price per pound of nitrogen basis,
the average for urea was $1.06, anhydrous
$0.93, UAN28 $1.13 and UAN32 $1.14.
See Inflation, Page 11
Jayson Jacoby/Baker City Herald
A swather cuts alfalfa in a field in Baker City
on June 16, 2022. Farmers and ranchers say
production costs, including fuel for equip-
ment and repair parts, have risen substan-
tially this year, largely or completely offset-
ting the benefits of higher crop yields due to
a damp spring.
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