President's address: feeding people while protecting the environment

Welcome to Fertiliser Focus 2025 brought to you by the Fertilizer Association of Ireland in conjunction with the Irish Farmers Journal.

Heightened concerns over food security in Europe and in other regions across the world in recent years are closely coupled with the need to enhance the sustainable management of crop nutrient inputs and to build resilience into our agricultural soils and farming systems to changing weather patterns.

Irish farmers have carefully maintained the health and productivity of their soils and utilised the long growing season to produce high yields of grass and crops for a long time.

The management of fertiliser resources has been critical in this respect and has enabled farmers to maintain economically viable grassland and tillage cropping enterprises thus far.

However, our agricultural systems must continue to evolve over the next decade and adopt new technologies to combat emerging challenges from climate change and meet national targets for emissions reductions and water quality and future targets for biodiversity and soil health.

The mission of the Fertilizer Association of Ireland is to promote the efficient use of fertilisers to produce quality food in an economical and sustainable manner. Key technologies such as soil testing and nutrient management planning (NMP) have long been promoted as trusted sources of information to guide nutrient applications on Irish farms.

With the advent of the National Fertiliser database, the need to maintain current soil test results and develop a nutrient management plan on an annual basis in order to calculate the maximum nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) fertiliser allowances for each farm is more important than ever.

Declining fertiliser sales

Significant downward trends in national fertiliser sales reported by DAFM within the last four years, especially for P and K are likely to lead to negative effects on soil fertility in the medium term on many farms. These nutrients (especially P, K and S) are utilised by plants in the largest quantities and are the main building blocks on which food production relies.

As the old saying goes, “prevention is better than cure” and every effort needs to be made to replenish soil fertility through targeted applications of fertilisers and organic manures in the year ahead before soil fertility level slips.

The use of nitrogen (N) fertilisers “akin to the fuel” for plant growth in farming systems is coming under increased scrutiny due to its potential for loss to the environment.

However, when N fertilisers are used efficiently and according to the four R principles of nutrient stewardship “right N source, at the right time, and the right application rate and the right place”, they are very effective in producing high grass and crop yields and ultimately quality food production in a sustainable manner.

The fertiliser industry is working hard to bring more sustainable fertilisers to the market and the uptake of sustainable N sources such as protected urea (NBPT) by farmers is growing year on year. This is a key fertiliser technology that enables farmers to remain economically viable while also contributing massively to reductions in greenhouse gas and ammonia emissions within the agricultural sector.

More fertiliser technologies are likely to be available to farmers in the near future, which are backed by science and will provide further opportunities for farmers and the agricultural sector to meet climate and water quality targets in addition to the generation of income.

The mission of the Fertilizer Association of Ireland is to promote the efficient use of fertilisers to produce quality food in an economical and sustainable manner

In Fertiliser Focus 2025, key considerations and information for fertiliser use on grassland and tillage farms are discussed for the year ahead. DAFM provides an update on the National Fertiliser Database (NFD).

While a certain fear factor was evident amongst farmers in 2024, it’s critical that farmers consult their advisers to develop fertiliser plans for their farms in order to calculate what quantities of different fertilisers they require for 2025, based on their N and P allowances.

The latest in the FAI technical fact sheets on “Fertiliser four Rs for better water quality” and “five key points for spreading urea” provides a timely update for farmers and the wider agricultural industry on how to maximise the efficient fertiliser use on farms.

The key points from the technical papers presented at the Fertilizer Association of Ireland’s spring meeting on Tuesday 4 February are also discussed.

New research underpinning soil-specific management of potassium (K) fertilisers is outlined in Fertiliser Focus 2025 in an article by Thomas McCarthy.

This research conducted at Teagasc, Johnstown Castle, has developed new insights for managing K applications more effectively to supply the needs for grassland when required and to minimise K loss from the soil while minimising issues with animal health due to luxury K uptake by grass swards.

Key metrics

The new AGNAV tool is also discussed and how it enables farmers and their advisers to evaluate several key agronomic and environmental metrics and performance indicators on their farms.

This online tool was developed in collaboration between Teagasc, BordBia and ICBF and can calculate the N and P balance and gaseous emissions profile associated with fertiliser use, amongst other management practices and technologies employed on Irish farms to reach climate and water quality targets.

AGNAV is a powerful tool that enables each farmer to access key information related to their own farm and will help guide their path to increasing the sustainability and profitability of their farming business.

The highlights and experiences from the Tirlán spearheaded Farming for Water – River Slaney Project is shared in an article by Thomas Ryan, Head of Agri-sustainability at Tirlán.

This programme is a key example of industry, advisory, local authorities and farmers working together to improve the sustainability of Irish farms, focusing on improving water quality and maintaining the Nitrates derogation.

With good progress to date and buy-in by farmers the investment in advisory support in the Farm Support Service (FSS) provided by the Slaney Project is paying dividends on the ground. Following on-farm consultation, the FSS report generated sets out the current status of the farm based on key performance indicators and areas for further development are identified to help guide farmers.

These experiences from practitioners and advice from experts demonstrate that where soils are maintained and managed effectively, they function correctly and can produce quality food in a sustainable manner. The Fertilizer Association of Ireland strives to support farmers and the industry to do just that.

Finally, can I remind readers that the Fertilizer Association of Ireland has many resources available to help make better decisions around fertiliser use this coming growing season. This information is available on our website (fertiliser-assoc.ie/), follow us on Facebook to see our advice on fertiliser and nutrient use and also our P and K nutrient app, available for Android and Apple.

I want to thank my colleagues in the Fertilizer Association of Ireland for their tireless work and enthusiasm to find solutions and support farmers and the wider industry and would also like to wish the FAI members and all readers the very best success for the year ahead.