USDA puts $500M into fertilizer investment initiative

Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins announced the launch of the $500 million Fertilizer Investment & Expansion for Long-Term Domestic Supply (FIELDS) Program, a new initiative administered through the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Development to expand domestic fertilizer manufacturing, strengthen America’s fertilizer supply chain and improve long-term affordability for American farmers.

Utilizing the authorities of the Commodity Credit Corporation, USDA will make $500 million available through the FIELDS Program to support construction and expansion of domestic fertilizer production facilities. The program prioritizes shovel-ready, financially viable projects capable of increasing production of critical crop nutrients.

"For decades, American farmers were forced to rely on unstable foreign suppliers for one of the most important inputs needed to feed our nation. Today, we are announcing a plan to end this consolidation and bring competition back to the American fertilizer industry," Rollins said on July 1. "Under President Trump's leadership, USDA is rebuilding America's fertilizer manufacturing base, strengthening supply chains and ensuring our producers have reliable and affordable access to the fertilizer they need to remain competitive.”

FIELDS builds upon USDA’s review of more than 120 fertilizer projects inherited from the previous Administration. The department worked alongside project developers, lenders, farmers and federal partners to identify barriers to construction and financing, using those lessons to develop a program focused on implementation-ready projects capable of delivering measurable production increases.

Administered by USDA Rural Development’s Rural Business-Cooperative Service, the program will support projects that expand domestic production of nitrogen, phosphate, potash, sulfur and other critical crop nutrients, strengthen competition, improve supply chain resilience and increase fertilizer availability for American farmers. Unlike previous fertilizer funding efforts, FIELDS emphasizes project readiness, financial strength, realistic construction timelines and measurable production outcomes.

The FIELDS Program is designed to support projects that are:

• Made in America

• Independent and competitive

• Farmer focused

• Innovative

• Energy dominant and secure

• Capable of delivering measurable production increases

“Food security is national security,” Rollins added. “A strong domestic fertilizer industry is essential to a strong agricultural economy. This investment will help ensure American farmers have access to a secure, reliable and domestically produced fertilizer supply for generations to come.”

The FIELDS Program complements the Administration’s broader fertilizer strategy to lower input costs and strengthen domestic production. In recent months, President Trump suspended countervailing duties on phosphate fertilizer imports to improve fertilizer availability and lower costs for farmers, designated phosphate and potash as critical minerals, established a USDA-Department of Justice memorandum of understanding to address anticompetitive practices affecting agricultural input markets, improved fertilizer transportation flexibility during supply disruptions and created USDA’s first dedicated agricultural economist focused on fertilizer markets and crop inputs.

“American natural resource extraction is the safest and most environmentally friendly in the world. It makes zero sense to import fertilizer from foreign competitors when we can make it right here while fueling our economy and protecting human health and the environment,” said Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin. “This is an obvious win-win for Americans farmers, families and businesses. The Trump EPA stands ready to help rebuild this vital arm of American manufacturing while ensuring each facility adheres to the strict environmental standards required by law.”

“President Trump's promise to restore commonsense to America's energy and climate policy continues to deliver. While past leaders harmed America’s agriculture industry with anti-hydrocarbon policies that drove up the cost of our food, the Trump administration will continue to take actions across the federal government to make fertilizer more accessible and affordable,” said Energy Secretary Chris Wright. “I’m proud to be working hand in hand with Secretary Rollins on these important initiatives."

Individual awards will range from $15 million to $150 million, with funding focused on projects that strengthen domestic fertilizer manufacturing and deliver meaningful benefits to American agriculture.

Applications must be submitted electronically through Grants.gov by 11:59 p.m. on Aug. 15, 2026. Additional information, including eligibility requirements and application materials, is available through USDA Rural Development at www.rd.usda.gov and on Grants.gov.