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IFDC
FOCUS ON FERTILIZERS AND FOOD SECURITY
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Issue 5; July 28, 2008
TVA Fertilizer Technology Used Worldwide—But Few
New Products Since 1970s
$41 Million in TVA Research Returned $57
Billion to the World
IFDC Officials Call for New Generation of
Fertilizer Research
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Back Issues of Focus
on Fertilizers and Food Security
Issue 1 - June 2, 2008 -
World Fertilizer Prices Soaring
Issue 2 - June 15,
2008 -
Establishment of African
Fertilizer Financing Mechanism
Issue 3 - July 1, 2008 -
India Gives Fertilizer Sector
Top Priority for Natural Gas
Issue 4 -
July 15, 2008
-
Global Shortage of Sulfuric
Acid Contributes to Rising Fertilizer Costs |
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About 75% of fertilizers and fertilizer technology
used around the world today was developed or
improved during the 1950s to 1970s by scientists and
engineers at the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) in
the United States, according to John Shields,
Interim Director of IFDC’s Research and Marketing
Development Division and former TVA official.
“An investment of $41 million in fertilizer research
through 1981 returned an incredible $57 billion
to U.S. agriculture,” Shields says. “That doesn’t
include benefits of the technology to the rest of
the world.”
But
inadequate public funding caused closure of the TVA
fertilizer research program in the early 1990s. Today,
publicly funded fertilizer research and development has
essentially ceased—and so has the flow of new and more
efficient fertilizers and fertilizer manufacturing
technologies. |
Fertilizers developed by TVA include urea,
diammonium phosphate (DAP, and sulfur-coated urea.) |
TVA
developed high-analysis fertilizers with high nutrient
content as well as more efficient manufacturing processes.
These
include urea, diammonium phosphate (DAP), triple
superphosphate (TSP), sulfur-coated urea, and liquid
fertilizers. TVA improved the manufacturing processes for
ammonium nitrate and other products that help commercial
producers provide efficient fertilizers to farmers
worldwide. TVA’s ammonium-granulation and bulk blending
technologies improve the efficiency of the manufacture of
many mixed fertilizer grades. TVA generated most of the
fluid fertilizer and dry bulk blending technology used in
the United States today.
“TVA
technology fueled the sweeping advances of U.S. farmers in
food and fiber production in the 60s to 80s,” Shields says.
“Today, fertilizers are responsible for more than a third of
total U.S. crop production.
“The
$57 billion return from a $41 million investment included
about $49 billion from use of high-analysis fertilizers and
$8 billion from process development and improvement.
That’s a benefit: cost ratio of more than $20 to $1.”
Dr. Amit
Roy, IFDC President and CEO, says, “TVA’s fertilizer program
is recognized as one of the most effective research and
development programs of any U.S. agency. Its benefits to the
world far outweigh the public investment that the United
States made in fertilizer research and development.
“It’s time
to launch a radical initiative to develop a new generation
of energy-efficient fertilizers to help avert hunger and
famine.”
Analysis
Headlines
around the world warn of impending food crises and even
famines. During the U.N. Food Summit in June 2008 in Rome,
more than 180 world leaders addressed the food crisis and
stressed the urgent need “to decisively step up investment
in science and technology for food and agriculture.
Solutions
The need
for increased food is escalating, but new agricultural
technology is not keeping pace. An effective fertilizer
research and development program should be a key element of
any long-term strategy to alleviate the food crisis. Farmers
need new, environmentally friendly, and cost-effective
fertilizers if food production is to keep pace with
population growth.
“IFDC is
in a unique position to meet this challenge,” Roy says.
“We’re the world’s only agency with the necessary facilities
and expertise. We have both the physical and human resources
to do the job. IFDC has a complex of six pilot plants for
research and training in fertilizer development and
production plus a highly qualified team of scientists and
engineers. We also have the international contacts to build
support for a new, vigorous fertilizer research and
development program.
“We can
pick up where TVA had to cease.”
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