Let's talk about how different types of fertilizers are made:
Nitrogen Fertilizers:
These are made using a process invented over 100 years ago. Here's how it works:
Phosphorus Fertilizers:
These are made from rock that is dug out of the ground. Here's how:
Potassium Fertilizers:
These also come from the ground. Here's how:
Each of these fertilizers provides different nutrients that plants need to grow.
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The International Fertilizer Association (IFA) has established 12 Safety, Health and Environment (SHE) Principles that all its members have adopted. These principles aim to ensure responsible and sustainable practices in the fertilizer industry:
These principles reflect the fertilizer industry's commitment to maintaining high standards of safety, health, and environmental protection throughout their operations, from production to distribution and sales.
Links:
IFA website - Members’ Commitments
IFA website – Industry Stewardship Champions
Sustainable mining of mineral fertilizers involves responsibly extracting the essential raw materials that are used to make fertilizers (phosphate and potassium) from the earth. A sustainable approach ensures a stable supply of fertilizers for global food security while minimizing environmental impact and supporting local communities. At its core, sustainable mining emphasizes environmental stewardship by reducing habitat disruption, lowering carbon emissions, and conserving biodiversity.
Companies focus on efficient energy use and water recycling to minimize land disturbance during the mining process. Community engagement is crucial; responsible companies collaborate with local communities to protect livelihoods and ecosystems. They invest in infrastructure and education while upholding fair labor practices. Looking ahead, sustainable mining addresses the finite nature of minerals by exploring alternative nutrient sources and developing efficient fertilizers.
Companies also commit to rehabilitating mining sites after operations cease, by turning the old mining areas into farmland, forests, or renewable energy sites. By using modern technologies like automation and energy-efficient equipment, sustainable mining reduces waste and environmental degradation. As the global population grows, this balanced approach ensures healthy soils and abundant harvests for future generations.
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In a circular economy, the goal is to recover and re-use nutrients from many sources of waste, to increase the efficiency of the nutrients as they are used, and to reduce losses of nutrients to the environment.
Let’s talk about a material called phosphogypsum, or PG for short. It is a by-product of phosphate fertilizer production. In the past, companies thought PG was just waste. They would pile it up on land or spread it around, not knowing what else to do with it.
But now, things have changed. Scientists and other experts have found out that PG can actually be useful. Because of this, many countries have changed their rules to allow PG to be used in different ways. So, instead of creating piles of PG, fertilizer companies are now finding ways to reuse it. They are turning millions of tons of what used to be waste into useful products.
For example:
Different countries have different rules about PG, but in many places where it’s produced – like Brazil, Canada, China, India, Russia, Morocco, and Belgium – people are working hard to find new ways to use it.
This is a big change that’s helping to reduce waste and create new, useful products from something that used to be discarded.
Links:
Infographic – How the Fertilizer Industry is Reusing Phosphogypsum
Think of fertilizers as food for plants. Just like humans need different nutrients to grow and stay healthy, plants need nutrients too. Fertilizers can be organic, coming from sources such as manure or compost, or they can be manufactured.
Fertilizers are different from pesticides, which protect against pests and diseases. To compare this with humans, fertilizers are similar to food and pesticides are similar to medicines.
Plants get some of what they need from the air and water around them. But there are other important nutrients they can't always get enough of from the soil alone. That's where fertilizers come in.
The main nutrients that plants need to grow are:
These are the main three nutrients – or ‘macronutrients’ – that plants need most. But there are also other macronutrients that plants use in smaller amounts. These include sulphur, magnesium, calcium, zinc, and iron, among others.
Fertilizers are really important for growing food. They help farmers grow more food on the same amount of land. In fact, about half of all the food we eat today was grown with the help of fertilizers.
So, when you're enjoying your fruits, vegetables, or grains, remember that fertilizers played a big part in helping those plants grow strong and healthy. They're a key part of how we produce enough food to feed everyone.
Links:
IFA website – What are fertilizers?
Infographic: 19 Plant Nutrients For Improving and Protecting Plant Health
Let's talk about how farmers use fertilizers in the best way possible. The main goal is to give plants exactly what they need, when they need it, with minimum wastage of fertilizer.
To do this, farmers practice something called ‘nutrient stewardship’. It's a smart way of using fertilizers that's based on science.
There are four main ideas to remember:
By following this ‘4R’ approach, farmers can grow healthy crops while taking care of the environment. It's all about being smart and efficient with how we use fertilizers to grow our food.
Links:
Infographic: Introduction to crop NUE
IFA website – Application Emissions
IFA / Systemiq Reducing Emissions from Fertilizer Use report
The fertilizer industry is working hard to become more environmentally friendly while still producing enough fertilizer to feed the world's growing population.
Making nitrogen fertilizers has some environmental impacts. The production of ammonia, a chemical used in the manufacturing of many fertilizer products, is responsible for about 1.3% of the world's greenhouse gas emissions.
Fertilizer companies are taking this problem seriously. They're measuring their environmental footprint and finding ways to reduce it. They've already made some improvements, but they know more changes are needed to really make a difference.
The industry is teaming up with energy experts, technology innovators and investors to discover new ways of making fertilizers that minimize pollution. They're testing new technologies that use renewable energy or capture greenhouse gases before they can harm the environment. However, these innovative methods are still being developed and can be expensive. The industry needs support from governments, scientists, and other groups to make change happen, faster and at scale.
Despite the challenges, the industry is committed to creating a more sustainable future while playing its part in ensuring global food security.
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Taking good care of soil nutrients is important for healthy farming. It's like giving the soil the right food to help it stay strong and productive. When we manage nutrients well, the soil becomes more fertile, holds more organic matter (which is like food for the soil itself), and becomes healthier in many ways.
Farming experts usually suggest starting with nutrient sources from the farm itself, like compost or animal manure. Then, if needed, farmers can add mineral fertilizers to help crops grow better and become more productive. It's often best to integrate both organic and mineral forms of nutrients.
If farmers don't use enough fertilizer, or use the wrong mix, it can harm the soil. As soil loses its nutrients, it becomes less healthy and can even start to wash away more easily when it rains. But when farmers use fertilizer efficiently and effectively, it helps the soil stay healthier over time.
Mineral fertilizers are important for growing enough food to feed everyone. They can help or harm the soil, depending on how they're used. The key is to use them wisely, based on scientific knowledge. This helps nutrients to be used efficiently and it keeps the soil in better condition.
Remember, taking care of soil nutrients is just one part of good farming. It goes hand in hand with choosing the right crops, dealing with pests, using water wisely, and taking care of the land in general. All these practices together help farmers grow food while also protecting the environment.
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How Fertilizers Help Protect and Capture Soil Organic Carbon
The fertilizer industry is working hard to become more sustainable, and fertilizer companies know they can't do it alone. That's why they're teaming up with innovative companies in agriculture technology that help farmers grow food in smarter, greener ways.
In 2021, the International Fertilizer Association (IFA) created a program called Smart & Green. This program helps share new ideas about feeding plants and connects fertilizer companies with innovative startups. These ideas include making fertilizers with a lower carbon footprint or use them in a more circular way, creating novel products, and using microorganisms to help plants better utilize nutrients from the air and the soil.
The fertilizer industry is also creating products to help farmers use nutrients more efficiently. Some of these products release nutrients more slowly, matching what plants need as they grow. Others can be mixed with water for application with irrigation water, which enhances the use efficiency of both water and nutrients. Innovative biostimulants could help plants become more resistant to stress (e.g. drought).
Farmers are also using technology, like computers, smartphones and sensors, to help them know exactly when and where to add fertilizer. This approach, referred to as precision farming, helps farmers to use just the right amount of fertilizer at the right time and place, which is good for both the crops and the environment.
All these efforts - working with startups, creating special products, and using new technology - are helping the fertilizer industry become more sustainable. They're finding ways to grow more food while taking better care of our planet.
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The fertilizer industry plays a big role in global agriculture and food production. Here’s a simple explanation of how it works:
In simple terms, the fertilizer industry is a worldwide network of companies and activities that help feed the world sustainably by providing nutrients that make plants grow better. It connects different countries and has a significant impact on both agriculture and the global economy.
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The Sustainable Fertilizer Academy is an online school for people who work with fertilizers. It helps them learn about how to make and use fertilizers in ways that are more sustainable.
The Academy offers 34 different classes that people can take. The great thing about it being online is that students can learn at their own pace and fit the classes into their work schedule. The Academy is split into two main levels:
By taking these classes, students learn about various approaches the fertilizer industry is taking towards greater sustainability.
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The fertilizer industry recognizes that biodiversity - the diversity of life on Earth - is crucial for people's health and the planet's future. They understand that action is needed to stop the ongoing loss of biodiversity.
To help with this, the industry is supporting the Global Biodiversity Framework. Its intention is to use existing scientific methods better and develop new ones to protect nature. This includes understanding how making and using fertilizers affects plants, animals, and ecosystems.
The industry is taking a step-by-step approach. After identifying how fertilizers impact nature, they're taking actions to protect biodiversity.
Using too much or too little fertilizer can harm ecosystems. To address these issues, the industry is focusing on improving the use of existing solutions, developing new, innovative ones, and partnering with other industries and stakeholder organizations. The goal is to find ways to grow enough food for everyone while protecting the environment and the world’s biodiversity.
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The fertilizer industry is working to address two important global challenges: growing enough food for everyone and protecting water resources.
These goals are closely connected because farming needs both water and fertilizers to produce food, but poor water management and over- or under-use of fertilizers can harm the environment.
Fertilizer companies are trying to improve water management within their operations by recycling water in ‘closed-loop’ systems, using onsite treatment and processing, especially in areas that experience water stress such as drought. They are also implementing prevention measures to stop water contamination. Some companies have also established wetlands around their sites. This helps to ensure the water they release is filtered naturally before returning to major waterways.
As the world's population grows and climate change affects weather patterns, farmers also need to find ways to grow more food using less water and plant nutrients. This is called ‘sustainable agricultural intensification’. It's about producing more food with less resource consumption.
Currently, farming uses about 70% of all the freshwater from rivers, lakes, and underground sources. At the same time, farmers use about 200 million tonnes of nutrients each year, to help crops grow. The challenge is to use both water and fertilizers more efficiently.
When water and fertilizers are used together in the right way, they can actually help each other work better. For example, having enough water helps plants absorb nutrients from fertilizers more effectively. On the other hand, plants with the right nutrients can use water more efficiently.
There are new farming methods that can help use both water and fertilizers more wisely. These include:
The biggest challenge now is to teach farmers about these new methods and encourage them to use them. This requires cooperation between farmers, scientists, the fertilizer industry, and government agencies.
By using water and fertilizers more efficiently, we can grow more food while protecting our environment. This is crucial for feeding the world's growing population in a sustainable way.
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The fertilizer industry is changing its approach to farming. In the past, it mainly focused on helping farmers grow more crops. Now, it’s also trying to make sure the food we grow is more nutritious and healthy.
Just like people need different vitamins and minerals to stay healthy, plants need different nutrients to grow well.
While the fertilizer industry used to focus on nutrients to help plants grow bigger, they're now paying more attention to growing healthier food. As they now include many more nutrients, the aim of ‘nutrition-sensitive agriculture’ is to grow a variety of nutritious foods and to ensure crops have all the nutrients they need to meet that objective.
This is important because many people around the world don't get enough of certain essential nutrients in their diets, which can lead to health issues. The fertilizer industry is asking governments to help farmers grow a wider variety of crops (especially pulses, fruits and vegetables) and to make staple foods (like rice or wheat) more nutritious in areas where people don't get enough good food. They're also looking at how to make animal feed more nutritious, which can lead to healthier meat and dairy products.
Overall, the fertilizer industry is trying to help farmers grow food that's more nutritious and healthy for people to eat, by adding micronutrients such as zinc, selenium and iodine to manufactured fertilizers. They're recognizing that the health of soil, plants, and people are all connected, and they're working to improve all three.
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Fertilizers play a crucial role in growing the food we eat. In fact, about half of all the food produced worldwide is grown with the help of fertilizers. Indeed, thanks to fertilizers, farmers can grow more crops on the same amount of land, which is becoming increasingly important as the world population grows.
Currently, there’s a big challenge in making sure everyone has enough nutritious food to eat. Nearly 690 million people around the world don’t have enough food, and about 2 billion people don’t get all the vitamins and minerals they need from their diet.
As the world population is expected to reach almost 10 billion people by 2050, we’ll need to produce about 50% more food than we do now. The fertilizer industry believes that one of the best ways to do this is by growing more food on the land we’re already using for farming, rather than cutting down forests to make new farmland. This approach is called “sustainable intensification”.
But it’s not just about growing more food – it’s also about growing healthier food. Fertilizers can help make crops more nutritious by adding important elements like zinc, iodine, and selenium to the soil. These elements are then taken up by the plants and can help address nutrient deficiencies in people who eat those crops.
The fertilizer industry is supporting research to better understand how fertilizers affect the nutritional quality of food and how they improve human health. In essence, fertilizers are an important tool in the global effort to produce enough nutritious food for everyone while also protecting our environment.
Links:
IFA website – Why we need fertilizers: Food and Nutrition Security
