Nitrogen prices have increased substantially from the prices offered to farmers in 2017. Prices of £225/t to £235/t have been reported by farmers and merchants. This is up from prices of £170/t to £180/t available at this time last year, a considerable jump of approximately £60/t.

Outside of the arable sector, grassland farmers are predominantly buying fertiliser to go out on second-cut silage ground, with the aim of rebuilding silage stocks after the tough spring which sees many silage pits empty.

The increased price will put more pressure on farmers who have also seen fuel prices increase substantially over the past few months and will squeeze farm incomes even more.

Farmers may be slow to forward-buy at these prices with the hope that any oversupply that may exist in the market could lead to lower prices later in the year.