The Middle East military conflict has indirectly pushed up agricultural production costs in Vietnam, particularly for rice farmers in the Mekong Delta. The challenge now is how to bring costs down as fertilizer prices could climb past VND1 million per 50-kg bag. For the 2026 summer–autumn crop, the Mekong Delta is expected to sow around 1.3 million hectares of rice, boosting fertilizer demand. However, this key input has risen sharply in recent days. Nitrogen fertilizer may exceed VND1 million per bag Fertilizer dealers in the Mekong Delta say prices have increased rapidly since late February 2026 and could return to more than VND1 million per 50-kg bag, a level last seen during the Covid-19 pandemic. Currently, Ca Mau urea is being sold to farmers at about VND930,000–950,000 per 50-kg bag, while Phu My urea costs VND900,000–920,000 depending on dealership. By comparison, at the end of February 2026, Ca Mau urea sold for roughly VND690,000 per bag, and Phu My urea for about VND660,000 per bag. In just over 10 days, the price of Ca Mau urea has risen by VND240,000–260,000 per bag, or 34.8–37.7%. Phu My urea has increased by a similar amount. The surge is becoming a major burden […]