Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the potential impact of global fertiliser supply chain disruptions on farmers in Northern Ireland; and what steps he is taking to mitigate the impact.

We monitor both domestic and international fertiliser markets and remain in regular contact with a wide range of industry stakeholders.

Government regularly runs a duty suspensions process allowing businesses to apply for duty suspensions (on imported raw inputs to production) to help them to remain competitive in the global marketplace. Enabling raw input prices to be more competitive can have a downward pressure on domestic prices.

Good nutrient management practices on farm also help make most efficient use of all sources of nutrients including bought in fertilisers. Government continues to monitor the functioning of the fertiliser supply chain and works closely with the sector in case of any disruptions.