Ibram/Fernando Azevedo: agribusiness drives demand, and the value of sulfur imports skyrockets

By Juliana Garçon Rio, 03/02/2026 - The agribusiness sector remains dependent on imports for fertilizers, and the sector saw an increase of 11.8% and 134.1% (in dollars), respectively, in imports of potassium and sulfur in 2025 compared to 2024, highlighted Fernando Azevedo e Silva, president of the Brazilian Institute of Mining (Ibram), in a press conference to release the sector's results. External purchases of potassium reached $4.24 billion and those of sulfur reached $581.6 million. However, in volume, there was a decrease: imports of potassium and sulfur fell by 2.9%, to 13.88 million tons (potassium) and 2.321 million tons (sulfur). "There was a restriction in the supply from major producers and heated demand from India and China, which pushed the price up. The price of sulfur increased by almost 90%," said Julio Nery, Ibram's director of Mining Affairs. Contact: juliana.garcon@estadao.com