Fertilizer Use Shows Decline

Dec 16, 2022

Overall fertilizer use in Canada appears to be on the decline.

Statistics Canada reported Thursday that 80% of national field crop producers applied commercial fertilizer in 2021, down 9 points from 2017. Meanwhile, that portion of forage crop producers applying fertilizer dipped 2 points to 39% during the same period, while almost two-thirds (63%) of fruit, vegetable, berry and nut crop producers applied fertilizer, down 12 points from 2017.

The report did not discuss the possible reasons for the decline, although a sharp rise in the cost of fertilizer is one potential culprit.

According to a StatsCan farm income report released last month, fertilizer expenses for Canadian farmers increased by a whopping 29.3% to $7.3 billion in 2021. A combination of factors led to the price run-up, including strong crop prices, supply chain issues related to the pandemic, high natural gas prices, and sanctions or duties against Russia and Belarus, two major global fertilizer exporters. With fertilizer on the rise, total national farm operating expenses (after rebates) increased by 10.5% to $60.3 billion in 2021, the largest increase since a 19% leap in 1981.

Click here to see more...

Video: predictive weed Management saves on herbicide costs and increases yield potential

Gowan Canada is partnering with Geco Strategic Weed Management to help Canadian growers take a strategic approach to weed control through data-driven prediction and planning.

Geco’s technology uses data and AI to map where weeds have been over the past five years and predict where patches are likely to emerge next season. These insights allow farms and retailers to plan ahead and target actions in the most challenging areas.

“Our technology enables the question: if you could know where your most problematic patches are and where they are spreading to, what could you do differently? That’s what our technology makes possible,” said Greg Stewart, CEO of Geco. “Many of our farms are already using our prescriptions along with Gowan products, so this collaboration is a natural next step.”