Fertilizers are used daily by farmers and families to help crops and gardens grow. Whether for a small garden of flowers and plants, or a large farm with thousands of acres of crops, a wide range of fertilizers have been developed to help different crops grow in different soil and weather conditions.
Chemical ingredients help create fertilizers that promote plant growth and are cost effective, too. Commercial and consumer fertilizers are strictly regulated by both individual states and the government to ensure that they are safe for the people who use them, people nearby, and the surrounding environment.
The India Fertilizer Market is a consolidated market with major players such as Coromandel International Limited, Indian Farmers Fertilizer Cooperative (IFFCO), Fertilizers and Chemicals Travancore (FACT), Deepak Fertilizers Limited and Chambal Fertilizers Limited, among others. The market is fragmented with a mix of government-owned and co-operatives garnering a high market share in the straight and complex fertilizer space and private companies engaged in a high degree of product innovation to tap the non-subsidy space.
The NPK grade with the highest count in the new CRU fertilizer grade database is 15-15-15. As it dominates the other unique 1200 grades, it is unlikely to be challenged in 2020. Perhaps surprisingly, the second and third most offered grades from the database are NPK 18-18-18 and 20-20-20, both of which are water-soluble.
The popularity of water-soluble fertilizers was palpably noticeable in 2019 where, for instance, many major Chinese phosphate producers that we visited on a research visit expressed interest in increasing tMAP production or building tMAP capacity. Many producers have plans to build more soluble capacity. The rise in fruit and vegetable cultivation as consumers become more health-conscious helps drive the change to compound fertilizers. Micro-irrigated areas are increasing to keep up with horticultural demand. Soluble compounds are still growing in popularity, and we expect this trend to continue in 2020. This facilitates the development of new technologies and ensures a high quality product.
Few Indian major players are as under
Basant Agro Tech (India) Ltd.
Coromandel International Ltd
Deccan Sales Corpn. Ltd.
Deogiri Fertilisers Ltd.
Khushhal Fertiliser Ltd.
Madhuvan Chemicals & Fertilizer Ltd.
Premier Fertilisers Ltd.
Sikko Industries Ltd.
