Fertiliser has gone up €20/t in price since last week, with protected urea up €50/t in most cases.

Supplies of urea are “under pressure”, according to industry sources. The EU’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), which now applies to all imported fertiliser from 1 January 2026, is contributing to the hike in urea prices, an importer told the Irish Farmers Journal this week.

“If you’re a urea user, the advice I would give is to source it now. You should definitely cover your requirements for first-cut silage. India has a huge tender out at the moment for 1.5m tonnes of urea. They’re mopping up what’s available and that’s driving the price up. The outlook for price doesn’t look like it’s going to come down,” one importer said.

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Retail prices

Farmers who bought protected urea (46%) in January paid in the region of €545/t, with quotes now gone to €600/t and €605/t with some merchants.

Quotes for big bags of CAN are between €420/t and €430/t this week, while 24-2.5-10 is €550/t and 27-2.5-5 coming in at €540/t.

Prices for 18-6-12 are between €555/t and €565/t.

“I bought a full load of protected urea in January and it was €545/t and I was quoted €595/t last week by the same company,” a dairy farmer from outside Nenagh, in Tipperary told the Irish Farmers Journal this week.

Meanwhile, with Tirlán’s €20/t rebate, a Wicklow dairy farmer paid €550/t two weeks ago for 30t of protected urea.

When comparing the difference between CAN at €430/t and protected urea (46%) at €600/t, the urea works out at 30c/kg of nitrogen cheaper than CAN.