The Central Statistics Office (CSO) has today (Wednesday, June 14) released statistics on fertiliser sales for 2022, which show a decrease of 18%.
The latest publication contains data on mineral fertiliser sales, the nutrient content of mineral fertiliser sold in Ireland, and lime sales.
Mineral fertilisers and lime are mainly used in agricultural production. Mineral fertilisers contain nutrients such as nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P) and potassium (K), which are absorbed from the soil by plants such as crops to support their growth.
Mineral fertilisers are used to prevent soil degradation and to allow continuing agricultural production, as well as to improve soil and crop yields.
However, excessive use of mineral fertilisers containing N and P can lead to water, soil and air pollution, as the nutrients are lost to the environment. Lime is a soil conditioner which is used to regulate the acidity of soil.
Fertiliser sales
Data on fertiliser sales and nutrient content of fertiliser sales are based on the crop year, which runs from October to September.
The key findings from the CSO indicate:
- The N content of fertilisers sold in 2022 was 14% lower than in 2021 at 343,193t;
- The P content of fertilisers sold in 2022 was down 26% on 2021 at 34,240t;
- Total fertiliser sales fell by 18% in 2022 to 1.4 million tonnes;
- In the crop year 2022, 55% of fertiliser sales took place in the three months from January to March 2022;
- Lime sales increased by 4% in 2022 to 1.4 million tonnes, the largest quantity of any year from 2000 to 2022.
Commenting on the data, Clare O’Hara, statistician in the Environment and Climate Division of the CSO, said: “This release from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) contains data on fertiliser sales from 2000 to 2022.
“Fertilisers are added to soil to provide crops with nutrients such as nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium. These nutrients enhance crop production but can also be lost from agricultural soil to groundwater, surface water and air, contributing to environmental pollution.
“In 2022, total fertiliser sales decreased by 18% to 1.4 million tonnes. Nitrogen content was down 14% at 343,193t, and phosphorus content fell by 26% to 34,240t. Lime sales increased by 4% to 1.4 million tonnes, which is the highest in the period 2000-2022.”
Quarterly sales data can give an indication of the time of year of greatest fertiliser use.
“Each year from 2015 to 2022, at least 75% of fertiliser sales took place between January and June, with only 2-4% occurring in October to December,” O’Hara continued.
“In 2022, 55% of fertiliser sales were in January to March, 22% were in April to June, and 20% were in July to September. Loss of nutrients to the environment is affected by the amount of rainfall at the time of fertiliser application.”
Fertiliser sales were at their highest of the time period 2000-2022 in 2000 at 1.7 million tonnes. They were at their lowest in 2009 at 1.2 million tonnes before reaching 1.7 million tonnes again in 2018 and in 2021.
Nutrient content of fertiliser sales
The nitrogen content of fertilisers sold in Ireland was 407,598t in 2000. It fell to its lowest level of the period 2000-2022 in 2011 at 295,795t, while it was highest in 2018 at 408,495t.
In 2022 there were 343,193t of N in fertilisers sold in Ireland, a decrease of 14% on 2021.
Phosphorus content was at its highest level of the period 2000-2022 in 2000 at 49,267t, and was lowest in 2009 at 20,231t.
In 2022, there were 34,240t of phosphorus in fertilisers sold in Ireland. This was a fall of 26% compared with 2021. There were 93,614t of potassium in fertilisers sold in Ireland in 2022.
Lime sales
Lime is a soil conditioner which is used to regulate the acidity of soil. Applying lime to soil leads to carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions due to the carbon content of the lime.
However, as soil acidity is a factor in fertiliser efficiency, applying lime to soil can reduce requirements for N, P and K fertilisers.
According to the CSO, this can result in a reduction in pollution, including a reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions arising from nitrogen-containing fertilisers.
Lime sales were at their highest of the period 2000-2022 in 2022 at 1.4 million tonnes. This was an increase of 4% on 2021, which in turn had already shown an increase of 50% on 2020.