During an interview with Mobile radio FM Talk 106.5's "The Jeff Poor Show," Agriculture Commissioner and lieutenant governor candidate Rick Pate discussed the impact of rising gas and oil prices on agricultural costs, particularly on fertilizer.
"Fertilizer price is driven by the cost of gas or oil," Pate said. "So, yes, that's kind of where we are in frame, where a lot of people were starting to plant, put in crops. We obviously all feel the price of gas going up. But in particular, the price of fertilizers has been a source of conversation. But, farmers just can't catch a break right now."
According to Pate, the cost of farm equipment has also risen sharply in recent years, posing another challenge for producers.
"The bigger farmers, the cost of equipment has gotten so high, and there is no sustainability without profitability," explained Pate. "There are plenty of people who like the lifestyle that comes with farming. You can't afford to do something without making a profit."
Pate touched on the relationship between rising input costs and selling prices for certain crops.
"We've got some different things happening in the cattle industry that are keeping those prices so high. But you know the problem is, is that a lot of these commodities, our farmers grow cotton, corn, soybeans, they're sold on a world market as a commodity, and so if input costs go up, it's hard to ever be able to adjust their selling price to make it up," Pate stated. "We had those 20% inflation years under the previous administration. So even though now we've gotten inflation pretty well controlled, it's not like you're going backwards, for what the price used to be before the previous administration."
"I'm sure consumers are feeling it," Pate added.
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