Concern over food supply after last ammonia plant closes

UK government must come up with a long-term strategy to protect food supplies following the closure of the UK’s last remaining ammonia plant, a retailers’ associations has warned.

Andrew Opie, director of food and sustainability at the British Retail Consortium (BRC), has raised concerns over CF Fertilisers’ decision last month to permanently shut down ammonia production in Billingham, Teeside.

“UK food security is important for every retailer who source the vast majority of their food here, so losing a plant which produces both fertiliser and CO2 as a by-product is very worrying. This is not a recent problem, and while we do not expect any immediate impact on food supplies, it is high time the government implemented a long term food security plan,” he told City AM.

Ammonia is a key raw material in the production of nitrogen fertiliser, which is essential for crop production, while its by-product carbon dioxide is a staple ingredient for food and beverage packaging. CF Fertilisers, a British subsidiary of the US-based CF Industries, was the only domestic producer of ammonium nitrate fertiliser since 2015 and is also responsible for 60 per cent of the UK’s CO2 production.

It announced last month it was permanently closing its Billingham ammonia plant – after 10 months of the plant not being in operation, saying the decision was made in response to the UK’s high gas prices compared to rival markets.

“The company believes that ample global availability of ammonia for import, including from CF Industries’ North American production network, will enable more cost competitive and efficient production and sales of ammonium nitrate fertiliser and nitric acid for its UK agriculture and chemicals customers moving forward,” CF Fertilisers said.

In 2021, British farmers used just over 3.5 million tonnes of fertiliser products – including 1.4m tonnes was ammonium nitrate.

Following the decision, Tom Bradshaw, deputy president of the National Farmers Union described the closure as “concerning” and urged the government to look closely at how this shift to a reliance of imported ammonia could impact domestic food production.

“Availability of fertiliser is a crucial element of domestic food security and relying on importing ammonia from global markets exposes British fertiliser production to possible long-term risks,” Bradshaw said.