The Overview
When you survey the geopolitical landscape at the moment, it is all too easy to feast on negative news, whether it be inflation, food or energy security, or the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. Sri Lanka is another – warned about in these pages long before it was picked up by other publications.
Another problem might soon be a global shortage of calcium nitrate for greenhouse growers. When Chinese suppliers start asking international traders if they have availability, then something is happening. This is paraphrasing how one trader put it to me. On the plus side, container freight is said to be softening slightly. But that will not help the current scarcity of calcium
nitrate on the global market and is something to add to the watchlist. Another to add will be the response to governments that have announced policies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture. There are ongoing protests in The Netherlands, and there is vocal opposition in Canada to the ones proposed there. The Canadian federal government has announced a target reduction in absolute levels of on-farm fertilizer emissions by 30 percent below 2020 levels, by 2030. Notice this is emissions reduction, not application reduction. Well-known Canadian agriculture consultant Robert Saik said in a LinkedIn video: “What’s got us
worried is not the fact that we want to reduce nitrous oxide emissions – that’s in everybody’s best interest – the thing that has got us concerned is whether the federal government is going to take into account [existing] technology and what the farmers are doing.” He went on to cite the use of urease and nitrification inhibitors, the use of variable rate dosage, and the application of 4R Nutrient Stewardship (right source, right rate, right time, right place). The ‘how’ strikes at the heart of the problem. Fertilizers Canada has recently provided the findings of a report they recently commissioned by accountancy and business advisory firm Meyers Norris Penny (MNP).
Cutting fertilizer use to reduce on-farm emissions could cost growers nearly $48 billion over the next eight years, states the MNP report. “When the federal government announced a 30 percent emission reduction target for on-farm fertilizer use, it did so without consulting – the provinces, the agricultural sector, or any key stakeholders – on the feasibility of such a target,” said Karen Proud, president and CEO of Fertilizer Canada. Saik questioned where the target of 30 percent came from. Others might say the emphasis should be on efficiency rather than on targets. And while some might broadly be supportive of a target, there is also the question of striving for it at a time when there are a number of geopolitical threats as mentioned above.
It is sometimes necessary to look below the storms on the surface and review the deep currents of technological change beneath.
As Saik continued in his video, he speculated on the impact that an emissions target might have on Canada’s agricultural exports: “The planet needs more – not less – Canada.” The International Fertilizer Association (IFA) has also released a report – somewhat coincidentally – that provides a detailed view to show how agriculture can reduce GHG emissions. When combing through the detail, some of the solutions are out there already (and have been for some time): nitrification and urease inhibitors, coated controlled-release fertilizers, not to mention the 4R Nutrient Stewardship. New AG International (NAI) has a new e-book on SCRSFs HERE.
The IFA report mentions fertilizer from waste. This is another topic
covered by NAI, and in this issue, we feature EasyMining (see here). But for all the gloom, there is good news to be found. Australia is set for a bumper harvest – its third in a row. This could help mitigate the restricted flow of grains out of the Black Sea. And staying with Australia, NAI covered the sulphate of potash (SOP) projects in Australia in its March 2022 issue (see here). As predicted in NAI’s story on Australia’s SOP projects, some of these projects would be accelerated in response to the restricted availability of fertilizer on the international market. In recent weeks, Trigg Minerals said it was advancing a pre-feasibility study at its Lake Throssell project in Western Australia. Salt Lake Potash, which
has undergone several names and went into voluntary administration in October 2021, has reportedly found a buyer. In the fertilizer markets, an acceleration in projects is often seen when prices head north and provides a good example of how commodity markets work – a high-price environment attracts more supply. But for all the turbulence in today’s markets, it is sometimes necessary to look below the storms on the surface and review the deep currents of technological change beneath.
Luke Hutson, Editor-in-Chief
And not to overdo the maritime metaphor, there is a raft of science and technology stories in this issue. We feature a new project to use lasers to detect pests and diseases in plants. See ‘Making light work ’ HERE.
The IFA report mentions the prevention of food waste and so finding ways to protect crops through early warning signs might offer one route. In ‘Biohacking against fungal attacks’, NAI Editor Janet Kanters reports on the researchers who have developed alternatives that trick pathogens’ chemical communication with plants. Even with established inputs for biological products, the global seaweed industry is still exploring new applications, writes NAI contributor Lindi Botha. And in Chile, researchers are developing a biological formulation that aims to increase tomato tolerance to water stress and soil salinity. Leonardo Gottems writes.
Enjoy the issue
