Potash is becoming increasingly more essential in agriculture right now. Potash is essentially potassium, one of the critical nutrients that make modern agricultural yields possible. Fertilizer uses only potash as its source of potassium. Potash is vital to the world's food supply. The potash hasn't been doing as well recently. This is because other minerals were needed over potash. Now seems like things will change. Potash is supposed to become more wanted. This has inspired the hostile takeover of a Canadian potash company by an Australian minerals company.Potash urges shareholders to avoid BHP tenderPotash Corporation of Saskatchewan is known as Potash by many. It is also the business that controls much of the potash market in the world. The Canadian fertilizer business should be concerned about a company in Australia. The big minerals extraction company in Australia, or BHP Billiton, is trying to get their hands on the company. The New York Times reports how much BHP is willing to pay to get their hands on the business. The offer was $ 130 a share. The offer was not enough, if you ask the Potash board. BHP is putting the cash right in from of shareholders to try and get a hostile takeover Potash by paying a tender offer. Potash is trying to get a better offer from an additional while getting shareholders to stop selling to BHP.World needs potash for foodPotash is produced in 12 countries. Canada, Russia, Belarus and Germany are the countries that make over 75 percent of all the potash. Potash is really just a term to describe any potassium that is created, which is very important for fertilizers, reports Reuters. Potash strengthens a plant's resistance to disease, improves crop quality and boosts yields. You will need to get potassium in fertilizer. Potash is the only source for that. Potash hasn't been very stable in price. The prices have been volatile for years. Less than $ 150 a ton was how much it sold for ten years ago. In the global food crisis of 2007-08, it went up to $ 1,000 a ton. The price has gone down since then. It is $ 350-$ 375 a ton now.Get your potash from Saskatchewan like everyone else wantsUntil BHP has made all these moves, Potash hasn't really been anything any person cared about. Entrepreneur reports that if the growth in potash demand over the last five years continues, by 2011 the world will be unable to produce what it needs to sustain the food supply. There are numerous countries wanting more meat making it so potash is more needed. Examples of these countries are Latin America, China and India. Another factor is exploding growth in biofuels like ethanol, which the UN said could meet 25 percent of the worlds energy needs within the next 20 years. Both of these trends are already spiking wheat and corn prices, and portend a huge increase in potash demand. It is not all that easy to make more potash available. More than 85 percent of the world's potash mines are more than 25 years old. Untapped production capacity is limited and nearly all of it is Saskatchewan potash.Discover more info on this subject New York Times dealbook.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/08/20/bhp-begins-tender-offer-for-potash/?src=busln Reuters reuters.com/article/idUSTRE67J2SQ20100820 Entrepreneur entrepreneur.com/tradejournals/article/166229304.html