Cutting Fertilizer Use Will Cost Growers Billions: Study

Forcing fertilizer cuts to meet climate change goals will cost farmers dearly, according to a new study commissioned by Fertilizer Canada.

Undertaken by accounting firm Meyers Norris Penny (MNP) and released Monday by Ottawa-based Fertilizer Canada, the study suggests cutting fertilizer use to reduce on-farm emissions could cost growers nearly $48 billion over the next eight years.

Under Canada’s A Healthy Environment and a Healthy Economy, the federal government is envisioning a 30% absolute emissions reduction target for on-farm fertilizer use by the year 2030. Elsewhere, the European Union (EU) has proposed an absolute emissions reduction target and aims to achieve it through a 20% reduction of fertilizer use compared to 2020 levels.

But Fertilizer Canada – which represents manufacturers, wholesale and retail distributors of nitrogen, phosphate, potash and sulphur fertilizers – contends that any plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions must be done through what it describes as sustainable agricultural intensification; an approach that allows for significant reductions in agricultural emissions “without risking Canada’s contribution to global supply of food or economic growth within the sector.”

“When the federal government announced a 30% 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. “This study shows that we need to work together to find practical and pragmatic solutions for emissions reductions, without causing economic devastation to our agricultural sector.”

The Canadian fertilizer industry is already trying to do its part to mitigate climate change through its 4R Nutrient Stewardship initiative. 4R Nutrient Stewardship is a science-based approach to nutrient management that involves applying the right source (of fertilizer) at the right rate, right time and right place. By utilizing 4R best management practices, farmers can increase yields, while also achieving verifiable reductions in emissions.

Fertilizer Canada is calling upon Ottawa to recognize 4R Nutrient Stewardship as the standard in nutrient management and a key component to achieving on-farm emissions reductions from fertilizer.