For farmers preparing their fields for the winter crop season, fertilizer has become a growing source of concern, with many saying they are struggling to find government-priced supplies despite repeated assurances from the authorities that there is no nationwide shortage.
Mokbul Hossain (not his real name), a farmer from a southwestern district, recently bought diammonium phosphate (DAP), muriate of potash (MOP), triple super phosphate (TSP) and urea from a local vendor at prices higher than the government-fixed rates.
“I bought fertilizer from the local market to save time and avoid the hassle. DAP is selling at Tk33 per kg, urea at Tk30, MOP at Tk55 and TSP at around Tk50 in our area,” he said.
The government-fixed retail prices, however, are Tk21 per kg for DAP, Tk20 for MOP, Tk27 for TSP and Tk27 for urea.
Mokbul said farmers often face difficulties obtaining fertilizer from dealers even when stocks are available.
“Dealers receive fertilizer according to their allocation and distribution schedule. But some sell fertilizer outside the official distribution system at higher prices. If a dealer receives 500 sacks, farmers may have to wait while only around 200 are actually sold to them, with the rest kept aside or sold elsewhere,” he said.
Similar complaints have emerged from different parts of the country as farmers enter the peak Aman and winter crop seasons.
The situation drew nationwide attention on Sunday when farmers in Kurigram’s Bhurungamari upazila broke into a fertilizer dealer’s warehouse and took away 197 sacks of urea and MOP, alleging an artificial shortage and overcharging.
The incident has brought renewed focus to a central contradiction in the current fertilizer market: the government says there is sufficient fertilizer in the country, yet farmers in several areas say they cannot obtain it at the official price.
At a press briefing on Tuesday, Prime Minister’s Information and Broadcasting Adviser Dr Zahed Ur Rahman said there was no overall shortage of fertilizer and that the government had approved sufficient imports to meet demand.
As of August 24, the country had 1.365 million tonnes of fertilizer in stock, including 482,200 tonnes of urea, 369,000 tonnes of TSP, 368,000 tonnes of DAP and 146,000 tonnes of MOP, according to government figures cited by Zahed. Another 865,000 tonnes was at the import stage.
Zahed acknowledged, however, that temporary problems had emerged in some areas because of disruptions in the distribution system. He also said some dealers had failed to lift their allocated fertilizer, contributing to local shortages.
The government has taken action against some dealers amid allegations of irregularities. Five dealership licences have been suspended and around 25 dealers fined in connection with the recent crisis, according to a report published on Tuesday.
What is driving the crisis?
The available information points to four interconnected factors: distribution problems, disputes over the new dealer policy, higher demand and constraints on domestic fertilizer production.
Agriculture Minister Mohammed Aminur Rashid has described the unrest at the field level as a planned conspiracy by dealers, saying they are unhappy with the government’s new fertilizer dealership policy.
Dealers, however, say the problem is more complicated.
Rajshahi fertilizer dealer Osman Mia told Dhaka Tribune that allocations initially fell short of demand, creating a supply gap during the current season.
He said allocations for September had already been released and expressed hope that the situation would improve soon.
Golam Mostofa, a dealer in Kurigram Sadar upazila, said demand had increased because farmers were cultivating more land this year.
“Farmers are cultivating more land this year as there has been no flooding compared with previous years. As a result, demand for fertilizer is also higher,” he said.
Dispute over dealer policy
Another source of tension is the revised Fertilizer Dealer Appointment and Retention Policy 2025, which brings dealers operating under the Bangladesh Chemical Industries Corporation (BCIC) and the Bangladesh Agricultural Development Corporation (BADC) under a unified dealership system.
Some dealers claim the changes have created uncertainty over existing dealerships and increased competition within the distribution network.
Ministry sources say some dealers appointed under the previous system fear losing their dealerships under the new criteria. They also point to longstanding tensions between BCIC- and BADC-affiliated dealers.
Officials have also dismissed rumours that retailers will be scrapped altogether under the new policy, saying action will instead be taken against retailers operating without proper licences or trading under someone else’s name.
Such rumours, officials say, have added to uncertainty and instability in the market.
Mohammad Mosharraf Hossain, chairman of the Bangladesh Fertilizer Association, told Dhaka Tribune that dealers are unhappy following the implementation of the new dealership policy.
“Appointing two additional dealers per union, as proposed under the new policy, risks financial harm to both existing and incoming dealers,” he said.
Gas crisis adds to pressure
The fertilizer problem is also linked to Bangladesh’s wider gas crisis, which has disrupted domestic production.
Fertilizer factories have been operating below capacity because of inadequate gas supplies, affecting the country’s ability to maintain domestic urea production.
The Ashuganj Fertilizer Factory has remained shut since March 2025, while the Jamuna Fertilizer Company has also been out of operation since February, according to BCIC officials.
In an interview with Dhaka Tribune on Tuesday, Md Moniruzzaman, director (production) of BCIC, said three of the corporation’s five fertilizer factories were currently operating.
The production constraints are particularly significant because Bangladesh remains heavily dependent on imported fertilizer to meet domestic demand.
The government has continued approving fresh imports to maintain supplies. Tuesday, the government approved the procurement of 365,000 tonnes of fertilizer, including urea, MOP, DAP and TSP, through government-to-government arrangements.
The real problem: availability at the local level
The conflicting accounts suggest that the current situation cannot simply be described as either a nationwide fertilizer shortage or no shortage at all.
At the national level, government warehouses have substantial stocks and additional imports are being arranged. But at the local level, farmers say they are facing difficulties obtaining fertilizer on time and at government-fixed prices.
That gap between national stocks and local availability is where distribution irregularities, dealer disputes and increased seasonal demand appear to be converging.
The government has formed a three-member Cabinet committee, headed by Women and Children Affairs and Social Welfare Minister Abu Jafar Md Zahid Hossain, to review the fertilizer situation.
The committee will now face the more immediate question confronting farmers: not simply whether fertilizer exists somewhere in the country, but whether it reaches their fields on time and at the price fixed by the government.