The U.S. government’s decision to elevate potash – a key fertilizer ingredient – to the official list of “critical minerals” marks a quiet turning point in how we think about agriculture and national security. Potash, a potassium-rich salt vital for crop production, might seem an unlikely candidate for a minerals list typically dominated by high-tech metals. Yet its new status, driven by a Trump-era executive order, signals mounting concern that America’s food system could be a strategic vulnerability. In an era of geopolitical turbulence and supply chain shocks, even fertilizer has become a matter of statecraft.
In this long-form feature,
