The Mosaic Company
The Mosaic Company, through its subsidiaries, produces and markets concentrated phosphate and potash crop nutrients. It operates in three segments: Phosphates, Potash, and Mosaic Fertilizantes. The company owns and operates mines and production facilities, which produce concentrated phosphate crop nutrients and phosphate-based animal feed ingredients, as well as concentrated phosphate crop nutrients, such as diammonium phosphate, monoammonium phosphate, and MicroEssentials, a value-added ammoniated phosphate product. It also mines, processes, and sells potash to crop nutrient manufacturers, distributors, retailers, and to customers for industrial use; and owns and operates mines, chemical plants, crop nutrient blending and bagging facilities, port terminals and warehouses, which produce and sell concentrated phosphate and potash-based crop nutrients, and phosphate-based animal feed ingredients. In addition, the company produces a double sulfate of potash magnesia product under the K-Mag brand; and purchases phosphate, potash, and nitrogen products to produce blended crop nutrients. Further, it offers triple superphosphate, single superphosphate, and dicalcium phosphate; feed phosphate under the Biofos and Nexfos brands; potash for de-icing and as a water softener regenerant; and phosphogypsum. The company sells its products to wholesale distributors, retail chains, cooperatives, independent retailers, and national accounts through its sales force. It also exports its products. The company operates in the United States, Brazil, China, Canada, Paraguay, Argentina, Japan, Colombia, India, Australia, Peru, Mexico, Honduras, the Dominican Republic, Indonesia, and internationally. The Mosaic Company was incorporated in 1987 and is headquartered in Tampa, Florida.
What does it do?
Mosaic is one of the world's largest producers of phosphate and potash — two of the three key nutrients that farmers put into soil to grow crops. Think of it like this: every time a farmer grows corn, wheat, or soybeans at scale, they need to replenish the soil with fertilizer, and Mosaic mines and sells the raw ingredients that make that fertilizer. The company digs these minerals out of the ground in places like Florida, Saskatchewan, and Brazil, then processes and sells them to agricultural distributors and farms around the world. Without companies like Mosaic, global food production would fall sharply — there simply isn't enough naturally fertile land to feed 8 billion people without synthetic nutrients.
Food security has moved to the top of the global agenda since Russia's invasion of Ukraine disrupted exports from one of the world's biggest fertilizer-producing regions, putting a spotlight on how concentrated and fragile the fertilizer supply chain really is. Mosaic is one of a handful of Western companies that can actually fill that gap, which gives it unusual pricing power and geopolitical relevance. With global population still growing and arable land shrinking, the long-term demand story for crop nutrients isn't going away.
How does it make money?
Mosaic makes money by selling phosphate and potash by the tonne to fertilizer distributors, agricultural retailers, and large farming operations globally. Its Phosphates segment and Potash segment are the core earners, while Mosaic Fertilizantes handles its large Brazilian business — Brazil being one of the world's hungriest markets for crop nutrients. Revenue grew from $11.1 billion to $12.1 billion in the latest year, though net income came in at just $0.5 billion, suggesting margins have been squeezed — likely by higher input costs like natural gas, which is needed to process phosphate.
Why do investors care?
The bull story for Mosaic centres on a simple supply-demand imbalance: global fertilizer capacity is tight, new mines take a decade to permit and build, and emerging-market food demand is structurally rising. If fertilizer prices recover from their 2023–2024 lows — driven by restocking demand from farmers who have been holding back purchases — Mosaic's earnings could jump significantly because its cost base is largely fixed. The thing that has to go right is fertilizer pricing: when potash and phosphate prices are high, Mosaic prints cash; when they're low, margins get thin fast, as the current numbers show.
Deep Dive
MemberA full investor briefing on The Mosaic Company — history, leadership, risks, and outlook.