A corn industry leader says the recent tariff petition by top U.S. ammonia producer CF Industries could spell bad news for the food chain and U.S. farmers.

Missouri Corn Growers Association President Jay Schutte tells Brownfield four fertilizer companies control about 75 percent of the market.

“And I think they’re just exploiting an opportunity with some of the pricing that they’re doing now,” he said. “And it’s going to be even worse if you put a tariff on top of it.”

Schutte said the recent spike in fertilizer cost is pushing farmers to apply less in their fields.

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