Marjolein de Ridder is one of the chairman of the Interactive table session #11: The global raw phosphorus market.
The EU is almost entirely dependent on imports of phosphate rock from the rest of the world. Trends on the global phosphate rock market are putting the EU’s security of supply of phosphate rock under increasing pressure. Over two-thirds of production is concentrated in China, the US and Morocco, including Western Sahara, and Middle Eastern and North African countries account for 80% of global exports. Geopolitical turmoil can heavily impact the supply of phosphate rock to the EU, as witnessed with the Syrian conflict. This round table focuses on the dynamics on the global phosphate rock market and their implications for the EU. What options does the EU have to influence the global phosphate rock market? And how can a confrontation between markets for primary and secondary phosphate be avoided? The goal of this round table is to increase awareness that import reliance represents a risk for European food security and agriculture and to explore robust policy strategies to adequately deal with developments on the global phosphate rock market.
