While much of the nation's attention has been on rising oil and gas prices, the ongoing conflict and blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, a critical shipping route, are also disrupting fertilizer supplies essential for American farmers.
"My diesel fuel for my tractors has went up $2 a gallon over the last four weeks. And the diesel fuel for my trucks and road tractors, it's gone up from $3.39. I paid $5.59 this morning. That's a bigger problem," said Alan Williams, a fifth-generation farmer in Person County.
With planting season just weeks away, Williams and others are bracing for a season of difficult choices.
"It's going to be tight. You're going to be pinching pennies," he said.
About a third of the world's seaborne fertilizer passes through the Strait of Hormuz, and the ongoing conflict has fueled massive price increases for nitrogen fertilizer, a staple for crop production.
"I hope the war ends today or tomorrow, and things will go back to normal," said Tim Gilliam, president of Camp Chemical Corporation, which supplies fertilizer to farmers across the region.
"Granular nitrogen was about $620 a ton before the war. It's about $950 right now," Gilliam added. Since the start of the conflict, nitrogen prices have surged by 40% to 60%.
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Despite the spike, demand remains high as farmers scramble to secure what little supply is available.
"Everybody's been scared that they wouldn't get it. So as the price is going up, they're just buying kind of crazy," Gilliam said.
The Fertilizer Institute warns that American farmers could face a shortfall of 2 million tons of urea fertilizer this spring, potentially affecting crop yields nationwide.
On top of supply and price concerns, central North Carolina farmers are also battling severe drought. Williams said rising production costs and withered pastures have forced him to buy barrels of hay just to keep his cattle fed.
"The biggest impact has been so far has been to my cows, because my ponds don't have water. They are-some of them are almost dry before we got the snow. It definitely makes it not profitable when you're buying hay," he said.