Some farmers like Dan Hansen in Avoca, Iowa, are exploring so-called clean alternatives to nitrogen-based fertilizers. Startups marketing alternative crop fertilizers said they are gaining traction among U.S. farmers and investors, pitching themselves as a potentially cheaper option as prices for traditional fertilizers surge. Companies such as Pivot Bio, Kula Bio and Anuvia are pushing development of farm fertilizers by harnessing microbes or plant-based products to deliver nutrients that corn and other crops need. They aim to replace traditional fertilizers produced from natural gas or mined underground, prices of which have hit records this year due to supply-chain constraints and Russia’s war on Ukraine . While some farmers have been skeptical of trading in tried-and-true fertilizers for still-nascent alternatives, startup executives and investors said that escalating prices for traditional nitrogen, potash and phosphorous-based fertilizers are giving farmers extra incentive to test drive the new products. Such startups, which pitch […]