The U.S. Secretary of Agriculture announced the launch of the $500 million Fertilizer Investment & Expansion for Long-Term Domestic Supply (FIELDS) Program Wednesday (July 1, 2026), a new initiative administered through USDA Rural Development to expand domestic fertilizer manufacturing, strengthen America’s fertilizer supply chain, and improve long-term affordability for American farmers.
Utilizing the authorities of the Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC), USDA will make $500 million available through the FIELDS Program to support construction and expansion of domestic fertilizer production facilities. The program prioritizes shovel-ready, financially viable projects capable of increasing production of critical crop nutrients.
FIELDS builds upon USDA’s review of more than 120 fertilizer projects inherited from the previous Administration. The Department worked alongside project developers, lenders, farmers, and federal partners to identify barriers to construction and financing, using those lessons to develop a program focused on implementation-ready projects capable of delivering measurable production increases.
Administered by USDA Rural Development’s Rural Business-Cooperative Service, the program will support projects that expand domestic production of nitrogen, phosphate, potash, sulfur, and other critical crop nutrients, strengthen competition, improve supply chain resilience, and increase fertilizer availability for American farmers. Unlike previous fertilizer funding efforts, FIELDS emphasizes project readiness, financial strength, realistic construction timelines, and measurable production outcomes.
The FIELDS Program complements the Administration’s broader fertilizer strategy to lower input costs and strengthen domestic production. In recent months, President Trump suspended countervailing duties on phosphate fertilizer imports to improve fertilizer availability and lower costs for farmers, designated phosphate and potash as Critical Minerals, established a USDA-Department of Justice Memorandum of Understanding to address anti-competitive practices affecting agricultural input markets, improved fertilizer transportation flexibility during supply disruptions, and created USDA’s first dedicated Agricultural Economist focused on fertilizer markets and crop inputs.
The FIELDS Program is designed to support projects that are:
- Made in America
- Independent and Competitive
- Farmer Focused
- Innovative
- Energy Dominant and Secure
- Capable of Delivering Measurable Production Increases
“Food security is national security,” Ag Secretary Brooke Rollins added. “A strong domestic fertilizer industry is essential to a strong agricultural economy. This investment will help ensure American farmers have access to a secure, reliable, and domestically produced fertilizer supply for generations to come.”
Individual awards will range from $15 million to $150 million, with funding focused on projects that strengthen domestic fertilizer manufacturing and deliver meaningful benefits to American agriculture.
Applications must be submitted electronically through Grants.gov by 11:59 p.m. on August 15, 2026. Additional information, including eligibility requirements and application materials, is available through USDA Rural Development at www.rd.usda.gov
Comments