en.Wedoany.com Reported - The Mosaic Company and the Canada West Foundation have jointly authored an article calling on Canada to treat potash as a strategic commodity, consolidating its position as a reliable global potash supplier through infrastructure investment and labor mechanism adjustments.
The article notes that global trade is shifting from relatively unimpeded free trade to an era in which major powers use control over resources, technology, and market access to achieve political, economic, and security objectives. For middle powers like Canada, resource development is not only economically significant but also tied to safeguarding national sovereignty. Potash supply is directly linked to global food production: without potash, global agricultural productivity would decline sharply, weakening the world's ability to feed a growing population. Canada offers a stable, rules-based alternative, and supply reliability is increasingly relevant to geopolitics.
Approximately one-third of global potash production comes from Saskatchewan, through which Canada supplies more than 40 countries. Mosaic operates some of the world's largest potash mines in the province. Canada's main competitors in this sector include Russia (19%), Belarus (15%), and China (13%). The article argues that if Canada were absent, the global potash industry could become dominated by authoritarian states.
The article states that Canada's trade infrastructure deficit is estimated at $110 billion to $270 billion, affecting road, rail, and port networks. Vancouver's Second Narrows Rail Bridge, built in the 1960s, is a single-track bridge and the only rail link to North Shore terminals, making it a critical bottleneck in the export supply chain. Between 2022 and 2024, six major labor disruptions affected approximately 2 million tonnes of potash exports, valued at around $1 billion. Because much of the trade relies on a few critical rail and port corridors, the impact of labor disruptions quickly ripples through the entire supply chain, damaging Canada's reputation as a reliable trading partner.
Mosaic has requested that the federal government include potash under the existing Canada Labour Code rules, which ensure that goods such as grain continue to be transported during labor disruptions. Citing reform options consulted by the Canadian government, the article considers measures such as revising cooling-off periods, mediation and negotiation timelines, and establishing a special mediator role to be promising. The article also recommends increasing marshaling capacity, extending rail sidings, and making targeted investments in critical bottlenecks such as the Second Narrows, while proactive action is needed to prevent frequent stoppages from undermining customers' shipping capabilities.
Fertilizer supply is highly time-sensitive—farmers have only 10 to 12 days to apply fertilizer, and missed shipments cannot be made up within the same growing season. In key markets such as Southeast Asia, supply disruptions have already caused Canadian producers to lose market share, and lost contracts may take years or even decades to rebuild. The article concludes that Canada needs to strategically position itself as a reliable supplier of commodities and treat potash as a strategic commodity. It cites the Esterhazy mine in Saskatchewan as an example of how Canada's potash supply chain connects the country's rail network to the daily diets of families in Southeast Asia, creating value in domestic employment, economic opportunity, and global food security.
