The Trump administration announced a 60-day waiver of the Jones Act in an effort to ease high oil and fertilizer prices for Americans.

The Jones Act, officially known as the Merchant Marine Act, is a federal shipping law that typically requires goods moved between U.S. ports to be transported on U.S.-built, flagged, owned and staffed vessels.

The temporary waiver allows more ships, including foreign-flagged vessels, to move fuel, fertilizer and other inputs between domestic ports.

“This action will allow vital resources like oil, natural gas, fertilizer and coal to flow freely to U.S. ports for 60 days, and the administration remains committed to continuing to strengthen our critical supply chains,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said.

The move comes as global instability disrupted energy and fertilizer markets. Conflict in the Middle East has driven fuel prices higher and slowed shipments of fertilizer components, tightening supplies just as Texas farmers began spring planting.

American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) President Zippy Duvall said the waiver is a step toward easing immediate supply pressures at a time when farmers are already facing tight margins.

“Spring planting season is already underway, and the jump in fertilizer and fuel costs, as well as the threat of shortages, sent shockwaves across rural America at a time when farmers are already grappling with low commodity prices and high inflation,” Duvall said in a statement.

Farm Bureau previously urged the administration to take action to protect fertilizer supply chains, warning disruptions could ripple from global markets to individual farms and ultimately impact food production and prices.

The national organization sent several recommendations, including the Jones Act waiver, to the president that would help farmers get needed supplies.

“We’re pleased that he understands the market pressures they face and the short window they have to get crops into the ground,” Duvall said. “We look forward to working with the administration on further steps to ensure farmers have the resources necessary to grow the food we all rely on.”

Read the letter to President Trump.

Read a Market Intel on the impact of the war in Iran on fertilizer supplies.