By Suchita Gupta
With the continuous rise in global population, the demand for food is increasing rapidly. In order to meet the growing demand for crops, the agriculture industry mostly uses synthetic or chemical fertilizers for the rapid production of crop yields.
However, people of the modern era are becoming conscious about the harmful effects caused by chemical fertilizers to both human beings & environment, which is why, they are shifting their preferences towards an organic lifestyle. Shifting from conventional farming to organic farming is undeniably a challenging task for farmers. This is because soils rarely contain sufficient nutrients for growth of crop yields potentially. Adding richness of nutrients to the soil organically needs higher labor costs, resulting in higher production costs. But, millennials are willing to pay more in order to have organic food products, which is sequentially paving way to the growth of the global organic fertilizers market.
According to a report published by Allied Market Research, the global organic fertilizers market size is projected to reach $15.9 billion with a considerable CAGR from 2021 to 2030. The Asia-Pacific region is currently holding the highest market share, owing to the fact that the agriculture industry is huge in emerging countries like India & China.
However, the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic led to impact the global organic fertilizers market negatively. Due to the implementation of global lockdown, the manufacturing hubs of organic fertilizers were temporarily closed, especially in the initial period. Even while the manufacturing facilities were back on track, the producers of organic fertilizers faced a lot of challenges such as unavailability of raw materials, lack of labor force, disruptions in the supply chain, and so on. Also, implementation of transport restrictions made it difficult to export organic fertilizers from India and China, thereby hampered the growth of the global organic fertilizers market to some extent.
Nevertheless, several government investments and subsidies on organic fertilizers are increasing steadily, which in turn, is acting as a driving factor for the growth of the global organic fertilizers market. Also, due to the fact that organic fertilizers help in improving soil fertility, crop health, and productivity, the demand for organic fertilizers is increasing in more than one way.
Moreover, in the past few decades, American consumers have gained interest in sustainability and organically produced crops. Surge in tourism has augmented the requirement for fresh fruits and vegetables that are grown locally in America. Fertilizers used for organic crop growing are manufactured from natural plant & animal materials, and mined rock materials. Ingredients such as dried blood, crushed shells, ground bone, pulverized fish, manure, guano, wood, and phosphate rock are used to manufacture organic fertilizers. Plant based fertilizers such as alfalfa meal or compost generally break down quicker than other organics.
In addition, organic fertilizers can be in the form of liquids, solids, or powders, each having specific use & benefits. With the usage of organic fertilizers, the ability of soil to hold onto water and nutrients increases significantly. Organic substances used in fertilizers increase the bacterial and fungal activity in the soil. They contain carbon, nitrogen, potassium, and phosphorus that helps microbes make nutrients available for crops in a naturally occurring biological process. Mineral based fertilizers can further help in raising or lowering the pH level when needed for healthy plant growth.
For instance, bat guano is a powdery organic fertilizer that is rich in nitrogen, phosphorus and trace elements. It is protected by caves from leaching so that the nutrients remain conserved. Similarly, blood meal is a powdery organic fertilizer that is collected from cattle slaughterhouses. It is a great source of nitrogen. It should be used sparingly in order to not burn crop roots. Bone meal is another organic fertilize that is highly rich in calcium and phosphate. It is a by-product from other animal slaughterhouses. It is widely used for strong root systems and flowering.
Furthermore, rock phosphate is a rock powder that contains calcium, phosphate, and trace elements. Greensand, likewise, is a powdery organic fertilizer that is rich in potassium, iron, and multiple micronutrients. Fish emulsion, on the other hand, is a partially decomposed blend that can be used sparingly in order to avoid roots burn, alike blood meal. Shell meal or shellfish fertilizer is formed from crushed shells & bones of shellfishes and crabs. It has calcium, phosphorus & most importantly, chitin that boost the growth of organism. This way, proper utilization of organic fertilizers can result to a bumper crop of vegetables or flowers.
With this drift on board, the advantages provided by organic fertilizers is giving rise to improved cultivation practices with a full sway. Here, it is worth mentioning that the global organic fertilizers market is expected to assemble huge prospects and exponential growth in the upcoming years.
About the Author
Suchita Gupta is an explorer, musician and content writer. While pursuing MBA, she found that nothing satisfies her more than writing on miscellaneous domains. She is a writer by day, and a reader by night. Besides, she can be found entertaining her audience on social media platforms. Find her on LinkedIn & Instagram.
