The first fossil-free fertilisers or 'green fertilisers' will hit the market in 2023, as Yara and Lantmännen have signed a commercial agreement.

These fertilisers will have an 80% to 90% lower carbon footprint, as they are produced with renewable energy and decarbonise the food chain, offering consumers more sustainable food choices.

Yara, a global fertiliser producer, and Lantmännen, a Swedish agricultural co-operative, began testing the commercial viability of green fertilisers in 2019.

Instead of using fossil fuels such as natural gas to produce ammonia, the building block of mineral fertilisers, the green fertilisers will be produced using ammonia based on renewable energy produced in Europe.

Yara has a portfolio of green ammonia projects in Norway, the Netherlands and Australia and is working to expand its clean ammonia business.

Collaboration

President and CEO of Yara Svein Tore Holsether said that the company has to transform the food system to deliver on the Paris Agreement and this will require collaboration across the entire food chain.

"The Yara-Lantmännen partnership is a concrete example of how this can be done," he said.

Using the green fertilisers will be an important step towards reaching climate neutral farming, Lantmännen said.

"With this partnership, we can continue to meet an increased market demand for sustainable products,” says group president and CEO at Lantmännen Per Olof Nyman.

The fertilisers will be incorporated into Lantmännen’s cultivation programme, 'Climate and Nature'.

30% reduction

With the programme, Lantmännen says it has reduced the climate footprint from wheat cultivation by up to 30% since 2015.

With green fertilisers in the mix, the company says the climate impact will be reduced even further by 20%.

The programme also makes it profitable for farmers to adopt more sustainable farming practices.

Combining the fertilisers with fossil-free fuels, transport and precision farming, Lantmännen aims to establish a fossil-free value chain from field to fork.

Yara and Lantmännen are also collaborating on other projects to reduce the carbon footprint of farming in the field through crop nutrition solutions and innovative farming practices, as well as digital tools, enabling the transition to a decarbonised and more sustainable food value chain.

Lantmännen background

Lantmännen is a Swedish agricultural co-operative whose work involves machinery, bioenergy and food products.

It is owned by 19,000 Swedish farmers and has 10,000 employees, with operations in over 20 countries.