Fertilizer efficiency is directly linked to correct soil management

Optimizing land use to produce more food, energy and fiber with high productivity without increasing area has been the main mission of Brazilian farmers in recent harvests. However, the same modern agriculture that seeks high productivity, with genetically improved plants, sometimes does not achieve the expected results. This is because the producer has applied all this technology to weathered soils, that is, with great dependence on massive doses of fertilization with nitrogen, phosphate and potassium fertilizers to achieve results.

 Tropical soils are, in general, originally deficient in N, P and K and with a great capacity for loss and immobilization of these nutrients, due to the processes of volatilization, adsorption and leaching. For these reasons, high doses of these fertilizers are normally used, above the plants' needs, to compensate for the expected loss that occurs in production systems.

Several factors interfere with the agronomic efficiency of the use of fertilizers by cultivated plants, and may be related to the soil, the culture, the management adopted, the environment and the fertilizer used. Some actions can be taken to increase this efficiency, including the management adopted and recommended by the International Plant Nutrition Institute (IPNI-Brazil) such as reductions in losses of arable land, the development and use of genetic materials that are more efficient in using N , P and K, the use of fertilizer that is more balanced with other nutrients, the application of fertilizers at the correct time, dose and location, adequate management of straw and soil organic matter, adequate soil management to ensure good pH, aeration , Ca content and low content of toxic elements, control of salinity in the soil and other factors that impede root growth, and the use of more efficient sources.      

Each of these possibilities may individually have a limited contribution, below what is necessary to satisfactorily increase the overall efficiency of fertilizers, but the combination of several of them can bring significant and impactful gains on a large scale. In this sense, Kimberlit Agrociências, a company with almost three decades in the fertilizer, nutrition and plant physiology sector, has been acting decisively in the development of technologies that enhance efficiency of use. Kimcoat is one of these alternatives, composed of additives and specific substances used to cover nitrogen fertilizer granules (urea); phosphates (MAP, TSP and SSP) and potassium (KCL). Over the last ten years, Kimberlit Agrociências has developed work and partnerships with producers, consultancies and research institutions that have contributed to the dissemination of these concepts and results of Kimcoat technology in fertilizers. By reducing nutrient losses, another high-value gain from using these technologies is reducing the risk of environmental impacts that can occur with the use of high doses of fertilizers.

Kimcoat technology, in its 10 years of development, offers producers a technology that does not imply: negative impacts on soil fertility; do not release substances with polluting potential into the soil after their degradation; not be toxic to plants and animals; be stable throughout the production process; do not negatively affect the physical characteristics of fertilizers; be compatible with all raw materials on the market and their possible mixtures and have a cost compatible with the value of the benefit delivered to the consumer.