Studies indicate that nitrate-based inputs can increase productivity in coffee cultivation

Yara, a world leader in plant nutrition, has as one of its main areas of focus the development of research related to the correct use of fertilizers to increase productivity, product quality and reduce carbon emissions resulting from input applications in Agriculture. Currently, the company is conducting more than 150 research studies in Brazil in partnership with several institutions on the benefits of using fertilizers on different agricultural crops, thirteen of which are on coffee (eleven on Arabica coffee and two on Conilon).

“Brazil is, today, the largest coffee producer in the world, with 33% of global productivity, according to Conab. To maintain this leading role in a sustainable way, it is necessary for coffee growers to adopt agricultural practices that do not have an environmental impact, especially in terms of carbon emissions, and this involves the correct choice and application of inputs. In this way, Yara conducts several researches with associations and universities on the impact of using nutritional solutions on the main agricultural crops, contributing to productive and sustainable agriculture”, said Thaís Regina de Souza, senior researcher at Yara.

One of the crop research carried out by Yara is in partnership with the Federal University of Lavras (UFLA) and has been carried out since the 2015/16 harvest at the NKG Farm, in Santo Antônio do Amparo (MG). It detected an increase in productivity in the Arabica coffee crop of 4 bags per hectare when applying nutritional solutions based on ammonium nitrate, such as the YaraBela and YaraMila lines, compared to the application of urea, in addition to reducing carbon emissions in the application by 55% compared to the use of conventional fertilizers. This survey also highlights the loss of nitrogen through volatilization in coffee cultivation in the same comparison, nitrate-based fertilizers x urea, in which when applying the first product the losses were 13 kg/N in six harvests, representing approximately 0,6 % of the nutrient applied, while in the second the loss was 408 kg, representing 17% of the total nutrient applied, which proves that inputs containing ammonium nitrate in Arabica coffee can significantly reduce ammonia volatilization in relation to the use of urea, influencing greenhouse gas emissions, in addition to providing an increase in productivity.

Another survey developed by Yara was in partnership with consultant Henrique Paye, from Soil, and measured Conilon coffee productivity in a comparison between the use of two lines of special fertilizers for fertigation (YaraTera and YaraRega) and the application of conventional fertilizers. The survey, carried out on crops in Espírito Santo, detected an increase in productivity of 15% and an increase in the quality of the drink by 10,5%.

“With these studies, Yara proves that it is possible to increase productivity in coffee farming in a sustainable way, through the use of nutritional solutions with low carbon emissions, increasing product quality and reducing environmental impact. In addition to research on coffee, Yara conducts similar studies on the main Brazilian agricultural crops, which have already shown significant results”, adds Thaís.