Ashley Hinson’s Failed Leadership is Crushing Iowa Farmers Struggling to Make a Living Amidst Iran War, Rising Input Costs
The Gazette: “Iowa Farmers Were Already Struggling with Fertilizer Prices. The War in Iran Made Them Worse”
NBC News: “Is America on the Cusp of a Farm Crisis?”
New York Times: “Trump Struck Iran. Now Farmers Are Paying the Price”
DES MOINES – As the war in Iran drags on, headlines across Iowa are highlighting the acute pain Iowa farmers are feeling right now as they are forced to deal with ever growing input costs because of Ashley Hinson’s failed leadership in DC.
“Iowa farmers are struggling to keep up with rising costs under Ashley Hinson’s watch because of her refusal to put Iowa ahead of politics,” said Iowa Democratic Party spokesperson Drew Myers. “There’s a way out of this mess, but Hinson continues to vote with Republicans in Congress to support the war in Iran and chaotic tariffs that are directly responsible for sky-high input costs and slumping revenue. She’s demonstrating to Iowans in November that she is unwilling to fight for Iowa.”
The Gazette: Iowa farmers were already struggling with fertilizer prices. The war in Iran made them worse
- Iowa farmers are grappling with increasing input prices and uncertainty in global markets during this spring’s planting season, as already high production costs are exacerbated by conflict in the Middle East.
- Since the U.S.-Israeli military strikes against Iran in late February, the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a critical global shipping route, has led to skyrocketing fuel and fertilizer prices — two markets that farmers heavily rely on.
- And some are worried about the costs on farmers that could be passed down to consumers in grocery stores and at the pumps.
- “Farmers are in a bad spot,” Lillibridge said. “If you bought fertilizer last fall, you paid too much for it, and if you bought fertilizer now, you definitely paid way too much for it.”
- Iowa State University agricultural economist Chad Hart said rising fuel prices are also driving higher costs for farmers, who are heavily reliant on diesel.
NBC News: Is America on the cusp of a farm crisis?
- Fourth-generation Iowa farmer Mark Mueller is no stranger to the ups and downs of the agriculture industry. But right now, he thinks America is on the cusp of a farm crisis.
- “I am more concerned now than I have been in my 30 years of farming,” Mueller told NBC News.
- Even before the Iran war, Mueller said, many farmers felt they were being squeezed. Consolidation in the fertilizer industry and increased competition from abroad have resulted in higher prices for fertilizer and feed — and smaller returns on Mueller’s corn and soybean crops.
- Many farmers who couldn’t pay their bills in recent years went under. In 2025, the number of Chapter 12 farm bankruptcies reached 315, according to the American Farm Bureau Federation. That was up 46% from the previous year.
- Now, the Iran war is putting even more pressure on farmers.
- President Donald Trump’s tariffs have also added to the cost of goods that farmers import from overseas — and frustrated many of the foreign buyers of America’s agricultural products.“Our government made our life more difficult by walking away from trade deals or instituting tariffs or just basically making our customers angry — our customers being other nations and companies in other nations,” said Mueller.
- “I really do see fewer farmers when it’s all done,” he said. “In the end, the consumer will still have fewer choices, probably have a little higher prices, and farmers will have less margin than they did before.”
New York Times: Trump struck Iran. Now farmers are paying the price.
- Jolene Riessen, Iowa Farmer: “When I saw the new fertilizer price. I’m like holy crap. Talk about a kick to the gut. […] If it were up to me, the war would be done yesterday.”
- Lance Lillibridge, Former President of the Iowa Corn Growers Association: “This is the worst I’ve ever seen it. […] The current conflict in Iran is hurting farmers everywhere in Iowa and across the country.”
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