Reducing the Loss of Crop Nutrients to Waterways.

The United Nations estimates that world population will climb from 7 billion people today to 9 billion by 2050. For that many human beings to thrive on our planet, the world’s farmers must produce more food, fiber and fuel crops. To do so, farmers will need to focus on sustainable intensification—maximizing crop production on the same acreage and minimizing environmental impacts. Advanced fertilizers applied with best management practices can assist with achieving this goal.

Crop nutrients help plants grow and produce the food, fiber and fuel we need. But when crop nutrients run off farmland into a waterway, they instead continue to provide nutrition, but for algae which can contribute to impaired water quality. Various sources of nutrients can load local waterways, including runoff from farmland livestock operations and municipal wastewater. Nutrient losses from industrial, agricultural and other sources can stimulate algal blooms in water, impacting the surrounding watersheds. It is in everyone’s best interest that nutrients from agriculture remain in the crop’s root zone, especially farmers who achieve increased yields and more income when nutrients are absorbed by plants and not lost to runoff.

Good nutrient management is possible, but best management practices differ from farm to farm. There are approximately 2 million farms nationally and 81,000 farms in Minnesota. These millions of arable acres present a wide variety of needs. Reducing the loss of crop nutrients to waterways through nutrient management takes testing, research, planning, measurement and collaboration. The 4R Nutrient Stewardship framework of – Right source, Right time, Right rate, and Right place – is helping retailers and growers achieve the agricultural benefits of fertilizer and reduce nutrient loss to the environment.