GREEN VALLEY — Some farmers in eastern Ontario and Quebec are going into the U.S. to buy their fertilizer.

Martin Renaud, a crop farmer at Green Valley, east of Chesterville, says he bought phosphorous for $710 per tonne and Urea for $630 per tonne from a U.S. dealer.

In eastern Ontario, top quality urea can range from $800 to $850 per tonne.

About 50 farmers in Renaud’s area opted to buy fertilizer from a U.S. dealer, he says.

He estimates that in his operation – 400 acres of beans and 300 acres of grain corn – he’ll save about $20,000 on fertilizer.

The problem, he says, is that fertilizer dealers in Quebec and eastern Ontario locked in at the higher price last summer and are now stuck and won’t lower prices. He says the dealers should have lowered the price as the world market changed and taken the hit.

They needed to develop a buying strategy the way farmers do when they sell a grain crop. They should have bought in stages, Renaud says.

Steve Gardener, vice president of Harvex, near Kemptville, says his company and many other fertilizer dealers did just that. But historically the price has always been at its lowest point in the summer. "If you didn’t buy then, you were out of the market," he said.

When the prices of fuels plummeted "We were caught between a rock and a hard place," he said.

He says fertilizer is also coming in from Russia, but warns that grade varies for urea fertilizer. What’s more, storage is important because urea hardens when exposed to moisture.

Years ago, Harvex built a $1 million blending plant where potash and phosphorus can be blended with urea. "This is part of the service that goes with the sale of fertilizer," he said, pointing out that the service is not available from foreign buyers.

A farmer buying U.S. corn must present a certified cheque on delivery. The same practice is occurring in Renfrew County where dealers are asking for payment up front. The farmer gives the cheque to the truck driver.

"This has never happened before," one farmer told farmers Forum.

However, this is not common, Gardiner says, adding that Harvex has not changed its policy.