The cost of fertilizer and other products has risen significantly in the past month following the distribution of the supply chain and the rest isn't invasion of Ukraine by Russia.

Certainly, the price problem will worsen before they get any better.

As a farmer I'm looking at the dilemma through the fens of fertilizer and other farm inputs such as seeds and fuel. Since their prices are soaring, what happens next is entirely predictable.

The new fertilizer prices are causing untold suffering on many farms as the input becomes unaffordable.

During the 2021 cropping season and 50kg bags of DAP fertilizer was going for Sh3,100. Government subsidy lowered the price for farmers to Sh2,500

Today, however, the same commodity is going for as much as Sh6,200, a price that is out of reach of many farmers, including myself. I have no option but to use about half as much but fertilizer as I'd like to apply to my fields. Many smallholder farmers have taken similar decisions.

The result is that our crops will suffer from malnutrition leading to low yields. Fertilizer is one of the most important inputs. It adds potassium, phosphorus and nitrogen to the soil. These nutrients help crops to grow bigger, faster and yield more. But when farmers use less fertilizer, the harvest reduces. As farmers, we need our crops not merely to grow but also the flourish and produce the food we need.

Ukraine is one of the world's great food producing nations, thus the war threatens to remove a breadbasket from the global market. Moreover, Russia is a huge supplier of fertilizer ingredients – and now these exports are in limbo.

So what is the solution of this problem? Diplomats from around the world should strive to end the Russia-Ukrainian war to stabilize the global fertilizers supply chain.

Locally, public officials must come to the aid of farmer by allocating funds for subsidies. They should also think about long-term solution like the commercialization of GM crops that are high-yielding at minimum input. These crops can help farmers reduce their costs and grow more food.

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Dr Bor is a farmer in Uasin Gishu and a marketing and management lecturer at the Catholic University of Eastern Africa, Eldorst campus