American farmers rely on a fertilizer supply chain that stretches far beyond U.S. borders. Although the country produces most of its nitrogen and phosphorus fertilizers domestically, it still imports millions of tons of fertilizer products and raw materials each year. Nearly 39.4 million tons of fertilizer entered the country in 2025. Another 12.4 million tons […]
Author Archives: Mónica Cordero, Investigate Midwest
Mónica Cordero writes for Investigate Midwest. She is a former Report for America corps member and part of the Mississippi River Basin Ag & Water Desk team. Her expertise includes data analysis with Python and SQL, and reporting under the Freedom of Information Act.
Cordero has covered business, technology, agriculture, environment, politics, religion, and issues affecting the LGBTQ community, and has been involved in cross-border investigation projects. Her work has been published by Univision, Bloomberg Businessweek, La Noticia, Radio Ambulante, NPR, openDemocracy and The New York Times.
Cordero is a graduate of the University of Costa Rica and the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at the City University of New York.
Honors: 2020 Ortega y Gasset Journalism Award, a prestigious journalism prize in the Spanish-speaking world for best investigative reporting
Professional memberships: Investigative Reporters and Editors; Society of Environmental Journalists; National Association of Hispanic Journalists.
