Fertilizer Trends

This issue of Fertilizer Trends depicts some of the major changes in the fertilizer industry over the past 18 years. Hopefully, a review of past performance and emerging patterns will help suggest directions the industry should take in the next decade.

This report presents the world nitrogen, phosphate and potassium fertilizer medium-term supply and demand projections for the period 2016-2020. FAO, in collaboration with other members of the Fertilizer Outlook Expert Group dealing with fertilizer production, consumption and trade, annually provides five-year forecasts of world and regional fertilizer supply, demand and potential balance.

This report presents the world nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium fertilizer medium-term supply and demand forecasts for the period 2017-2022. FAO, in collaboration with other members of the Fertilizer Outlook Expert Group dealing with fertilizer production, consumption and trade, provides forecasts of world and regional fertilizer supply, demand and potential balance.

The World fertilizer trends and outlook to 2019 is the latest in a series of annual reports that result from meetings of FAO Plant Production and Protection (AGP) and Statistics (ESS) Divisions, and the Fertilizer Organization Working Group, in which nitrogen, phosphate and potassium fertilizer medium-term supply and demand is estimated and projected for the following five years. The report is intended for use by a range of stakeholders in the public, private and educational sectors and civil society to use as a source of information and guide to fertilizer use and trends at global, regional and country levels, and to assist in planning and management of fertilizer resources.

Ethiopia has experienced impressive agricultural growth and poverty reduction, stemming in part from substantial public investments in agriculture. Yet, the agriculture sector now faces increasing land and water constraints along with other challenges to growth. Ethiopia’s Agrifood System: Past Trends, Present Challenges, and Future Scenarios presents a forward-looking analysis of Ethiopia’s agrifood system in the context of a rapidly changing economy. Growth in the agriculture sector remains essential to continued poverty reduction in Ethiopia and will depend on sustained investment in the agrifood system, especially private sector investment. Many of the policies for a successful agricultural and rural development strategy for Ethiopia are relevant for other African countries, as well. Ethiopia’s Agrifood System should be a valuable resource for policymakers, development specialists, and others concerned with economic development in Africa south of the Sahara.

The main purpose of this paper is to characterize U.S. fertilizer technology in the late 1970's. The industry has largely developed over the past century and has experienced major changes in recent years particularly since about 1950.