65 years-long research concludes: Mineral fertilizer supports sustainable agriculture
05 September 2023 - 9:00PM
Dülmen, Germany, September 5, 2023: The
long-term trial (LTT) was conducted at Yara International’s
Hanninghof research center in Dülmen, Germany, and studied the
long-term effects of nutrient management in farming. The study
concludes that balanced application of mineral fertilizer is part
of sustainable crop production, with minimal environmental
impact.
Established in 1958, the LTT portrays the pivotal role of
balanced nutrition in soil health maintenance. The research
findings address the challenges facing the global food system, and
the increasingly urgent need for effective resource management to
ensure a resilient food system while protecting the
environment.
- The global food system is faced with fundamental challenges: We
need to produce more nutritious food to feed a growing world
population, while transforming the way in which food is produced,
to build healthier soil, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and create
a more sustainable food system. This study shows that applying the
right nutrients, in the right amount, at the right time and at the
right place, brings both environmental benefits and farmer
profitability, says Rejane Souza, SVP Global Innovation at Yara
International.
The relationship between nutrient application and soil fertility
is best studied in LTTs because soil fertility develops gradually.
Therefore, evaluating its effect on crop production requires
monitoring over a long time and proper data documentation. It can
take decades before changes become visible, for example, trends of
crop yield and effects of the environment on agriculture or vice
versa.
Since agriculture is removing nutrients from the soil with each
harvest, an efficient replacement of nutrients back into the soil
is required to sustain crop yields. While an unbalanced application
of nutrients results in low nutrient use efficiency and high
environmental pollution, the Hanninghof study concludes that the
best solution to achieve both effective and sustainable agriculture
is a balanced combination of mineral nutrients and integration of
organic fertilizer available on the farm with mineral
fertilizer.
- Agriculture's deep connection to the world economy, human
societies, and biodiversity makes it one of the most important
frontiers for global conservation. More than six decades of
research demonstrates that a balanced and combined application of
mineral and organic fertilizers supports the social, economic and
environmental aspects of sustainable agriculture. This
science-based approach to crop nutrition management is a legacy for
sustainable food production because it increases crop yields and
farmer prosperity, says Dr. Dejene Eticha, senior scientist at Yara
International.
Key findings from Hanninghof LTT
- Increased soil
health: Application of mineral and organic fertilizers
increased soil organic carbon (SOC) compared to the treatments
without any fertilizer. This was also observed in many long-term
studies around the globe; e.g., in Magruder LTT at Oklahoma, Aula
et al. (2016) reported a significant increase in soil organic
carbon content through the application of either nitrogen and
phosphorus, or nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium combined compared
to plots without any fertilizer.
- Increased water use
efficiency: The use of nitrogen,
phosphorus, potassium and magnesium fertilizer resulted in the
highest water use efficiency compared to omitting nutrients or
using just manure alone. Omitting nutrients decreased water use
efficiency by up to 63%.
- Improved
profitability: Application of the mineral nutrients;
nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium and magnesium fertilizers as a
balanced nutrition resulted in the highest yield and income of
crop. Omitting nutrients reduced crop yield and resulted in an
economic loss of between 89 and 812 USD per hectare.
The study, titled Effect of Balanced and Integrated Crop
Nutrition on Sustainable Crop Production in a Classical Long-Term
Trial, was conducted by scientists Melkamu Jate and Joachim Lammel.
The Hanninghof trial involved crops grown on 16 plots of loamy sand
soil that were given either organic fertilizers, mineral
fertilizers (Nitrogen, Phosphorus, Potassium and Magnesium),
various combinations of the two or neither of the above.
The complete long-term trial can be read here.
Contacts Brede HertzenbergHead of
CommunicationsMobile: +47 906 09
009E-mail: brede.hertzenberg@yara.com
Rejane SouzaSVP, Global InnovationMobile: +47 412 04
418E-mail: rejane.souza@yara.com
About Yara:
Yara grows knowledge to responsibly feed the world and protect
the planet. Supporting our vision of a world without hunger and a
planet respected, we pursue a strategy of sustainable value growth,
promoting climate-friendly crop nutrition and zero-emission energy
solutions. Yara’s ambition is focused on growing a nature positive
food future that creates value for our customers, shareholders and
society at large and delivers a more sustainable food value
chain.
To achieve our ambition, we have taken the lead in developing
digital farming tools for precision farming and work closely with
partners throughout the food value chain to improve the efficiency
and sustainability of food production. Through our focus on clean
ammonia production, we aim to enable the hydrogen economy, driving
a green transition of shipping, fertilizer production and other
energy intensive industries.
Founded in 1905 to solve the emerging famine in Europe, Yara has
established a unique position as the industry’s only global crop
nutrition company. We operate an integrated business model with
around 17,000 employees and operations in over 60 countries, with a
proven track record of strong returns. In 2022, Yara reported
revenues of USD 24 billion. www.yara.com
About Yara Agronomic Research and Development
(YARD):
Yara Agronomic Research and Development (a.k.a. YARD) is a
diverse and engaged global team with broad and deep expertise. YARD
focus on innovation and value capture by ensuring agronomically
sound content embedded in all new solutions development or expanded
reach/value capture of current solutions, regardless of the type of
solution (fertilizers, biostimulants, recommendations, tools,
services, knowledge sharing, etc.).
- Rejane Souza
- Hanninghof Field Trial
- Hanninghof Research Center
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