For most of history it was obvious that one should schedule conflict so as to avoid clashing with the agricultural cycle. Even as late as 1914 the harvest timetable may have played some role in the war planning of combatants. The current war is disastrous from the point of view of the modern agricultural cycle. Beneficiaries of the shock are major fertilizer producers like Yara International ASA and CF Industries Holdings Inc., the world’s largest ammonia producer. Meanwhile in India, fertilizer production is shutting down for lack of Qatari LNG.

Source: The North Africa Journal March 04, 2026 16:39 UTC