From July 27 to 29, the first stop of the large-scale research initiative on the medium- and micronutrient fertilizer industry—organized by the Agricultural Inputs Weekly of China Chemical Industry News—was Shanxi Province. Led by Wang Yong, Deputy Editor-in-Chief of China Chemical Industry News, the research team visited the Nitro-Calcium-Magnesium Fertilizer Branch of the China Nitrogen Fertilizer Industry Association, Shanxi Agricultural Inputs Group Co., Ltd., Jiaocheng Hongxing Chemical Co., Ltd. of Shanxi Province, Jiaocheng Sanxi Chemical Co., Ltd., Tianbang Chemical, and Tianfeng Fertilizer Industry, among other enterprises. The team conducted an in-depth investigation into local medium- and micronutrient fertilizer industry planning, the current production status of enterprises, export conditions, and market promotion strategies.

Data shows that Shanxi Province is one of China’s key production bases for medium- and micronutrient fertilizers. Among them, Jiaocheng County boasts an annual production capacity of 1.1 million tons of ammonium nitrate calcium, 40,000 tons of calcium magnesium nitrate, and 120,000 tons of calcium magnesium nitrate. Production and sales volumes have been growing at a rate of over 20% annually. Lu Jing, General Manager of Hongxing Chemical, told the research team that the local product line of medium- and micronutrient fertilizers—led by ammonium nitrate calcium—is now operating at full capacity. He noted that after decades of development, the establishment of well-integrated facilities, including those for nitric acid, has made the company’s industrial chain even more complete. Relevant enterprises are stepping up their R&D investments and actively seeking breakthroughs in the chemical structures of medium- and micronutrient fertilizers.

The research team learned that China’s current annual production capacity of ammonium nitrate calcium exceeds 2 million tons. How to optimize overall production capacity and coordinate the development of individual enterprises has become one of the industry’s key concerns. Niu Tianliang, General Manager of Sanxi Chemical and Chairman of the Ammonium Nitrate Calcium-Magnesium Fertilizer Branch of the China Nitrogen Fertilizer Industry Association, stated that the total output of ammonium nitrate calcium-magnesium fertilizer products in China is growing rapidly, the industry scale continues to expand, and the sector has entered a fast-track phase of development. Particularly under this year’s pandemic conditions, the Ammonium Nitrate Calcium-Magnesium Fertilizer Branch of the China Nitrogen Fertilizer Industry Association—established last year—has leveraged its platform advantages and information resources to strengthen the self-discipline awareness of ammonium nitrate calcium-magnesium fertilizer enterprises and refine the pricing system. At the same time, the branch has actively communicated with government departments to encourage member companies to build new-era chemical enterprises that are resource-efficient and innovation-driven.

Liu Wangming, Deputy Director of the Shanxi Province Agricultural Input Business Management Department, stated that as the primary channel for agricultural input distribution across the province and the main force in serving farmers, Shanxi Agricultural Inputs has been making every effort to promote micronutrient fertilizers. On the one hand, they leverage their 100 farmer-benefit centers, 500 farmer-benefit service stations, and over 2,000 sales and service outlets throughout the province to promote micronutrient fertilizer products. On the other hand, they have extensively rolled out “Crop Hospitals” services, offering a variety of socially-oriented agricultural technology services—including soil testing and formulated fertilization recommendations, online agricultural technical training, plant nutrition consultation, and pest and disease control strategies—thus enabling more farmers to learn about and adopt micronutrient fertilizer products.

Niu Zhijun, Chairman of Tianbang Chemical, stated that China’s agriculture is shifting from a focus on “quantity” to an emphasis on “quality,” and fertilizers containing trace and secondary elements such as calcium and magnesium hold great potential for future development. Wang Yanwei from Tianfeng Fertilizer Industry, meanwhile, expressed his hope that the newspaper’s event would inject vitality into the development of the trace and secondary fertilizer industry, provide guidance for corporate decision-making, and serve as a valuable reference for agrochemical services.

Wang Yong, Deputy Editor-in-Chief of the China Chemical Industry News, stated that the newspaper’s organization of this large-scale survey on the micronutrient fertilizer industry aims to gather comprehensive data on the sector, identify model enterprises that have achieved outstanding development, and explore new ideas and models for promoting micronutrient fertilizers. In the post-pandemic era following 2020, the China Chemical Industry News will join forces with government agencies, industry associations, enterprises, experts, media, and other relevant stakeholders to focus on the healthy development of the micronutrient fertilizer industry. The China Chemical Industry News will dispatch its core journalists to key crop markets across the country, conduct in-depth on-site interviews with leading micronutrient fertilizer companies, exemplary application cases, and demonstration bases, and ultimately produce vivid, objective, and comprehensive field reports that will help foster the industry’s healthy growth. (Wang Yang, Zhao Lijun)