Fertilizer International 519 Mar-Apr 2024
31 March 2024
Sustainable growth with water-soluble fertilizers
INDUSTRY VIEWPOINT
Sustainable growth with water-soluble fertilizers
AQUIFERT
Fertilizer International spoke to Matt O’Leary, the MD of Aquifert, about the state of the water-soluble fertilizer (WSF) market at the 2024 Fertilizer Latino Americano Conference in Miami in February.
Opaque and misunderstood?
“Aquifert is a company specialising in the trading and distribution of water-soluble and speciality fertilizer. We look simply to solve the problem of getting quality products from quality sources at competitive prices to provide much need certainty – in what’s still an under developed, opaque and misunderstood emerging sector of the global fertilizer economy.
“The global water-soluble fertilizer market has moved on from its niche origins. It is dominated by China and occupying a pivotal role in sustainable agriculture.”
The sustainability debate
“As a commercial input alone, WSF adoption makes sense as it’s one answer to … the ever-increasing global debate about climate, food security and regenerative agriculture. We see our products as a hat tip to the anti-fertilizer movement. Whilst a worthy cause, that’s impractical for food production, should we wish to feed everyone. Aquifert’s conviction is the market will demand better practices and we are at the forefront.
“Adopting WSFs is a substantial stride to addressing overuse, actual plant requirements, reductions in the physical amount of fertilizer and a more simplified way to track fertilizer use in general. From a micro level on the farmer ledger, through to a macro benchmark on national consumption levels. In essence, there is significantly more output, for every metric, from the use of these products – which are fast approaching ‘conventional’ status.”
Big hitters and the rest
“Making up 80-90 percent by volume, the WSF carthorses are water-soluble NPK, technical MAP 12-61, monopotassium phosphate (MKP) 0-52-34, calcium nitrate, sulphate of potassium or SOP, potassium nitrate (NOP) 13-0-46 plus several forms of soluble magnesium sulphates and nitrates. Outside of these big hitters are the immature cousins. This group is made up of zinc, chelates, micronutrients, and others – think polyhalite, biostimulants, organics, liquids, and many other variants.
“The ability to apply [WSFs] in nearly all circumstances – to control for variables, such as weather, soil and application method – provides a channel to place management back into farming. [Harvard professor] Michael Porter would be pleased!
“Better feedback improves results and more space on the balance sheet for marketing, harvesting and enhancing other areas of any farming enterprise. We believe this will assist in lightening the bureaucratic loads now common in modern farming.”
China leading a global expansion
“China has a total market of 100 million tonnes of domestic fertilizer use, and is at the forefront in the production of the new wave of WSF and speciality fertilizers. Aquifert are positioned as experts in this market with over 20 years combined experience working in China.
“The considerable industrial resource within China’s borders has expanded its production from six million tonnes of WSFs in 2018 to an estimated 16 million tonnes by the end of 2024. This expansion in China, as the world largest food production business, demonstrates the shift that’s now underway – in an industry accustomed to vessels loaded with tens of thousands of tonnes of major nutrient products, but unfamiliar with containerised, small quantity trading.
“Fundamentally, Aquifert take the view on an expanding market. There is definitely a sense we could see developing markets and countries with low fertilizer use make the technological jump into more sophisticated fertilizers.
“According to the World Bank there are various countries with less the 3 kg per acre of fertilizer consumption. When this is backed up against an advanced economy, such as the UK where fertilizer per acre is over 200 kg, we see a significant opportunity for more sustainable practice and growth of the market.”
Chance to go green
“In relation to manufacturing, we do see a significant scope to adopt green procedures. Speciality fertilizers present an opportunity to experiment and lay the foundations as a testing field for green production. There are already some significant bets being laid by major EU speciality producers for green production.
“Farmers are the key operators. They’re the players in the supply chain most impacted by all these unfolding complexities. Aquifert is keenly aware of this and applies it as a fundamental thought process. The farmers’ point of view underpins the directions of the business and what projects we take on. How will this affect the farmer is the question we revert back to on a daily basis.
“Aquifert is working on developing and growing the business over an extended time horizon. The future of the industry as a major contributor to people’s wellbeing, the current willingness to adapt and change in response to pressures, the substantial opportunities being created and the speed of technological change – all of these make it a very exciting time to be operating in the fertilizer industry!”
