WASHINGTON, March 17 (Reuters) - The Trump administration is pursuing alternative sources of fertilizer due to shipping constraints linked to the ongoing Iran conflict, including supplies from Venezuela and potentially Morocco, White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett said on Tuesday.
"We've established licenses for Venezuela to produce more fertilizer. We've had discussions with Morocco," Hassett said during an interview on CNBC's "Squawk Box," describing these efforts as "an insurance policy against disruption" for U.S. farmers.
"I'm not saying that we can eliminate what disruption there is so far, but we can minimize it," Hassett added.
Fertilizer supplies have tightened as the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran has cut off critical nitrogen fertilizer shipments from the Gulf, causing prices to surge by more than one-third in recent weeks.
European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas has proposed a plan similar to a U.N.-brokered agreement that allowed grain exports from Ukraine during wartime. This deal enables Ukraine to export grain, foodstuffs, and fertilizers through the Black Sea without civilian vessels being targeted by Russia. Kallas said she discussed the idea with U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who confirmed the U.N. is "working on this."
(Reporting by Katharine Jackson and Susan Heavey; editing by Michelle Nichols)
