Beijing is the top producer and it controls exports of the primary raw material for fertilizers under a quota system

India has urged China to ease export curbs on urea as the Middle East conflict continues, threating to impact fertilizer production, Bloomberg has reported.

Beijing is the world's top producer of urea, and controls exports under a quota system, though it has yet to set the level of outbound shipments for 2026, the media outlet said.

The conflict in the Middle East has impacted supplies of liquefied natural gas, forcing fertilizer manufacturers in India to shut factories, according to the report.

Prices of urea, the most widely used nitrogen fertilizer which is crucial to food production, rose 21% in the first week of the conflict to the highest in more than three years.

On Tuesday, New Delhi said the availability of key fertilizers, including urea and diammonium phosphate (DAP), the world's most widely used phosphorus fertilizer, was adequate across the country.

India's domestic urea production capacity has trailed demand, according to rating agency ICRA. It estimates that New Delhi's reliance on urea imports will increase to around 30% of total consumption by 2030. ICRA projects urea demand in the current financial year to be 38 million metric tons.

India's export relaxation request comes amid an uptick in ties with China, with reports this week indicating New Delhi has eased investment rules for neighboring countries to support local manufacturing, a step mainly aimed at Beijing.

India is the world's biggest urea importer, but it does not face an immediate fertilizer shortage. However, if gas disruption caused by the Middle East conflict persists, the South Asian nation may be forced to seek additional supplies of urea ahead of its main agricultural season, which begins in June with the arrival of monsoon rains.

Agriculture and allied activities accounted for 16% of India's gross domestic product in FY 2024-25, providing livelihoods to more than 46% of the population.