Diverse methods used to improve the nitrogen balance of agriculture and tackle the shortage of fertilisers
Changes in the global situation caused the prices of mineral fertilisers to increase steeply and made it more difficult to import nitrogen fertilisers and their raw materials from spring 2022. In its synthesis report published in early summer 2022, the Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke) summed up alternatives and solutions for the nitrogen challenge in agriculture.
Based on the report, Luke held a roundtable discussion with representatives of key stakeholders and prepared a joint expert statement for the parliamentary evaluation group for agricultural profitability and development prospects. The theme was given scientific visibility at the soil science event held in January 2023.
Improvements proposed for the security of supply
More than 60 per cent of all nitrogen used on Finnish fields has come from mineral fertilisers that are applied to all crops in regular agriculture. Roughly 30 per cent of all nitrogen is based on livestock manure. The dependence of Finland’s nitrogen fertiliser industry on the import of ammonia is a significant challenge for the security of nitrogen supply.
In the short term, the aim is to replace the import of ammonia from Russia with other markets. The stakeholder discussions highlighted the need to increase self-sufficiency in Finland and the EU. Self-sufficiency would be protected by increasing the biogas production volume so that purified biomethane could be used in ammonia production. Long-term focus should be increasingly on ammonia production based on hydrogen obtained through electrolysis, for which more wind and solar power could be used.
Solutions for nitrogen shortage from farming methods and the circular economy
The dependence of agriculture on the use of mineral nitrogen fertilisers can be reduced by increasing the production of legumes, including pea, bean and clover.
If all the opportunities of legume production were used in full in mineral soils on regular farms, the need for industrially produced nitrogen would decrease by roughly 60 per cent in Finland,” says Senior Scientist Hannu Känkänen.
In practice, a significant increase in the legume production volume would, however, require a higher disease resistance, the better availability of seeds, and the development of new forms of use. Furthermore, the use of nitrogen should also be intensified through precision agriculture in which fertilisers can be applied locally based on determined growth conditions.
Livestock manure and organic recycled fertilisers are used as alternative nitrogen sources for the use of mineral fertilisers. For example, agricultural plant biomasses and industrial side streams can provide additional nutrients for circulation. While the soluble nitrogen contained by manure and organic fertilisers acts as an effective nitrogen source for grass and cereals, their transport and storage still involve various challenges due to the high water content and the evaporation of nitrogen. In fact, we should adopt new processing methods and increase effective storage and application practices. The stakeholder discussions also highlighted the need for a more effective recovery of nitrogen from municipal wastewater.
