A innovative company based at the Rothamsted Centre for Research and Enterprise has made a breakthrough by combining biological and chemical technologies in the development of a new type of fertiliser.
This new approach to agro-chemistry and others are to be discussed at the next Pollinator meeting on 9th October.
With regulatory uncertainty for some current crop management solutions this meeting is particularly timely, Dr Belinda Clarke, Director of Agri-Tech East, comments: “We know farmers and growers are keen to be involved in the direction and implementation of trials of new technologies, such as fertilisers, which is exactly why we hold ‘Pollinator’ events to provide an opportunity to hear first-hand about the pipeline of agri-tech innovative.”
New approach to fertiliser
Nitrogen is vital to build plant proteins and increase growth, however it is thought that less than 40 per cent of nitrogen in commercial fertilisers makes it to the plant. “You either have a water soluble product that is leaked out, or locked up depending on the soil’s characteristic. Or you have something that isn’t water soluble and is hard for the plant to absorb,” explains Cyril Cappe, CEO of plant and animal nutrition specialists TimacAgro UK.
TimacAgro UK have a team of over 100 R&D scientists working to develop new fertiliser technologies at their parent company, the Roullier Group’s Global Innovation Centre in France. By taking into account the full crop cycle and focusing on the nutrient efficiency, rather than just the fertiliser’s nutrient quantities, TimacAgro UK claim they have managed to develop the industry’s first major innovation in fertiliser for decades.
TimacAgro UK are based at the Rothamsted, where the world’s first commercial mineral fertiliser, single superphosphate (SSP), was invented. This led to the development of the modern plant nutrient industry in the mid-1800s.
TimacAgro will be joined by other large and small developers of next generation chemistries including Arlabion, Bayer Crop Science, De Sangosse, ECO-FP and Hockley Agro at Rothamsted’s Harpenden centre (AL5 2JQ) on 9 October, 4-7pm.
More information about the event is available at agri-tech-e.co.uk/events