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Winter crops need to be sown - but Australia’s farmers are worried about fertilisers and fuel

The Conversation · · 604 words · By Marit E Kragt

The article explains how the closure of the Strait of Hormuz has disrupted fertiliser exports from the Middle East, impacting Australian farmers reliant on imported urea. It details the production process of fertiliser, rising costs, and potential consequences for crop yields and food prices.

open_in_new Read the original article: https://theconversation.com/winter-crops-need-to-be-sown-but-australias-farmers-…

analyticsAnalysis

0%
Propaganda Score
confidence: 95%
Low risk. This article shows minimal use of propaganda techniques.

fact_checkFact-Check Results

11 claims extracted and verified against multiple sources including cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia.

check_circle Corroborated 9
help Insufficient Evidence 1
schedule Pending 1
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“The Strait of Hormuz is a narrow sea passage through which 20% of global oil supply is shipped.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple independent sources (RT News, Al Jazeera, Timeslive, Energydigital, Nypost) report that a significant percentage, specifically around 20% or one-fifth, of global oil supply passes through the Strait of Hormuz. This consistency across different news reports confirms the core claim.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — On 19 March 2026, the United States began an aerial campaign against Iranian targets to reopen the Strait of Hormuz following its closure by Iran in response to the attacks by the United States and Is…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_Strait_of_Hormuz_campaign
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, a major maritime choke point for world energy trade, has been largely blocked by Iran since 28 February 2026, when the United States and Israel launched …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_Strait_of_Hormuz_crisis
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Strait of Hormuz () is a waterway between the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman. On the north coast lies Iran, and on the south coast lies the Musandam Peninsula under the Musandam Governorate of …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strait_of_Hormuz
+ 5 more evidence sources
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“Roughly 20–30% of global fertiliser supply, such as urea, ammonia and phosphate, comes from the Middle East.”
CORROBORATED
Web search results indicate that the Persian Gulf region provides an estimated 20–30% of global urea exports and 20–30% of ammonia exports, supporting the claim that the Middle East is a major source of fertilizer supply. While the exact range (20-30%) is cited across multiple web results, the corroboration comes from multiple search snippets.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Middle East is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, the Levant, and Turkey. The term came into widespread usage by Western European nations in the early 20t…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle_East
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Middle East Eye (MEE) is a United Kingdom-based media website and channel that primarily focuses on news related to the Middle East, North Africa, and the broader Muslim world. Though the organisation…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle_East_Eye
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Middle East and North Africa (MENA), also referred to as West Asia and North Africa (WANA) or South West Asia and North Africa (SWANA), is a geographic region which comprises the Middle East (also…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle_East_and_North_Africa
+ 3 more evidence sources
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“The effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz has halted fertiliser exports from countries such as Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple web search results state that major fertilizer plants in Qatar, UAE, and Saudi Arabia have reduced or suspended production, and that the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz has stalled exports from these countries. This is reported across different search results.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — On 28 February 2026, the United States and Israel launched airstrikes on Iran, targeting military and government sites, assassinating Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and other Iranian officials, and infli…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_Iran_war
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2026 Iran war, including the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, has led to what the International Energy Agency has characterized as the "largest supply disruption in the history of the global oil m…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economic_impact_of_the_2026_Ir…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Qatar, officially the State of Qatar, is a country in West Asia. It occupies the Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East; it shares its sole land border w…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qatar
+ 3 more evidence sources
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“Most winter season grain crops are sown between April and June in Australia.”
CORROBORATED
Two separate web search results explicitly state that 'Most winter season grain crops are sown between April and June' for Australian farmers, confirming the timing mentioned in the claim.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — 2017 (MMXVII) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar, the 2017th year of the Common Era (CE) and Anno Domini (AD) designations, the 17th year of the 3rd millennium and the 21s…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2017
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — April 7 is the 97th day of the year (98th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar; 268 days remain until the end of the year.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/April_7
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — April Fools' Day or April Fool's Day (rarely called All Fools' Day) is an annual custom in many Western countries on the 1st of April consisting of practical jokes, hoaxes, and pranks. Jokesters often…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/April_Fools'_Day
+ 3 more evidence sources
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“Urea is produced through a carbon-intensive process known as Haber-Bosch.”
CORROBORATED
Two distinct web search results describe the conventional production process for urea: one mentioning the Haber's Process for ammonia, and another detailing the subsequent treatment of ammonia with carbon dioxide at high temperature and pressure, which is the basis of the Haber-Bosch process description.
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web search NEUTRAL — This technology presents a greener method for urea production, utilising ambient processing conditions to reduce the carbon footprint. It involves an electrocatalytic approach, coupling nitrate with c…
https://www.ntu.edu.sg/innovates/tech-portal/tech-offers/det…
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web search NEUTRAL — The conventional way of producing urea in industries is a two-fold process. First ammonia is produced through Haber’s Process. Ammonia is treated with carbon dioxide at high temperature and pressure, …
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/science/agriculture…
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web search NEUTRAL — The Haber-Bosch process involves synthesizing ammonia (NH3) by reacting nitrogen gas (N2) with hydrogen gas (H2) under high pressure and temperature in the presence of a catalyst.
https://chatgpt.com/share/b8fa71ee-40a5-4fd3-8ecc-e3d7e34f43…
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“Australian agriculture imported 3.85 million tonnes of urea in 2024, most of it from the Middle East.”
CORROBORATED
Two web search results provide specific data points: one stating Australia imported 3.85 million tonnes of urea in 2024, and another explicitly mentions that 'Australian agriculture imported 3.85 million tonnes of urea in 2024, most of it from the Middle East.' This consistency across multiple web sources confirms the claim.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Middle East were an Australian indie folk band that formed in Townsville, Queensland in 2005. The group garnered attention initially by playing small shows in their home town and quickly grew to …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Middle_East_(band)
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Middle East is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, the Levant, and Turkey. The term came into widespread usage by Western European nations in the early 20t…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle_East
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Christianity, which originated in the Middle East during the 1st century AD, is a significant minority religion within the region, characterized by the diversity of its beliefs and traditions, compare…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christianity_in_the_Middle_Eas…
+ 3 more evidence sources
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“The world price of urea has risen from A$675 per tonne in February to more than $1,000 at the end of March.”
CORROBORATED
Two web search results report the price surge, noting urea prices rising from around $675 per tonne in February to over $1,000 per tonne by the end of March, confirming the stated price movement and timeframe.
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web search NEUTRAL — With Hormuz effectively closed, those shipments have stopped. Urea prices have surged from around $675 per tonne in February to over $1,000 per tonne by the end of March, and that was before the full …
https://www.ddwlogistics.com/news/australia-is-being-hit-fro…
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web search NEUTRAL — Urea futures rose above $700 per tonne, the highest since October 2022, and are more than 70% higher this year, as the war in the Middle East severely disrupts global fertilizer markets. The conflict …
https://tradingeconomics.com/commodity/urea
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web search NEUTRAL — Australia relies heavily on imported fertiliser, and the Middle East supplies a large portion of the global urea market. Disruptions to supply have already pushed prices higher, with reports of 20% in…
https://www.agrimaster.com.au/knowledge/blog/fuel-and-urea-p…
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“Incitec Pivot Limited’s Gibson Island facility was Australia’s only manufacturer of urea until its closure in 2022.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple web search results state that Incitec Pivot Limited (IPL) announced the closure of its Gibson Island facility at the end of 2022, confirming the facility's operational status ending in that year.
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web search NEUTRAL — Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Incitec Pivot Limited (IPL) has announced the closure of its Gibson Island fertilizers plant in Australia at the end of 2022 after the comp…
https://www.industrialinfo.com/iirenergy/industry-news/artic…
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web search NEUTRAL — A DECISION on the future of Incitec Pivot Limited's plans to produce green ammonia at its Gibson Island facility is expected by the end of next month, IPL said in its Climate Change Report 2023 releas…
https://www.graincentral.com/news/agribusiness/gibson-island…
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web search NEUTRAL — Incitec Pivot Limited (IPL) will reluctantly cease manufacturing at its Brisbane-based Gibson Island plant at the end of December 2022 after exhaustive efforts were unable to secure an affordable long…
https://www.dynonobel.com/news-and-media/news/gibson-island-…
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“The Perdaman plant on the Burrup Peninsula won’t start producing urea until mid-2027.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple web search results consistently report that the Perdaman plant is scheduled to start production of urea from mid-2027 (specifically mentioning June 2027 or commissioning in March 2027 with full production in June 2027).
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web search NEUTRAL — About Project Ceres Project Ceres is Perdaman Chemicals & Fertilisers' flagship urea manufacturing development in Karratha, Western Australia. With a USD $4.5 billion investment, it will become Austra…
https://perdaman.com/perdaman-breaks-ground-30mw-renewable-e…
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web search NEUTRAL — THE COMPANY behind a major Western Australian fertiliser project, Perdaman, says it plans to start producing 2.3 million tonnes (Mt) of urea per annum from June 2027. With conflict in the Middle East …
https://www.graincentral.com/news/wa-plant-to-produce-2-3mt-…
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web search NEUTRAL — A Perdaman spokesperson has confirmed that of the total production, at least 1Mt will be made available for domestic use, with commissioning on track for March 2027, with "full production" due to star…
https://feedin.me/news/post/wa-plant-to-produce-23mt-of-urea…
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“Australia’s largest ammonia plant has been shut for two months after suffering a power outage.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was gathered from cross-references, web search, or Wikipedia for this claim. Therefore, the verdict is insufficient_evidence.
schedule
“Fertiliser and fuel costs constitute 25–30% of a cropping business’ total farm costs.”
PENDING
info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.