At the summit venue, leaders from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, the Policy Research Office of the Shanxi Provincial Committee, the Provincial Department of Industry and Information Technology, Taiyuan Customs, the China Nitrogen Fertilizer Industry Association, the Nitro-Calcium-Magnesium Fertilizer Branch of the China Nitrogen Fertilizer Industry Association, the Shanxi Foreign Investment and Foreign Trade Development Association, the Institute of Ecological Environment and Industrial Technology of Shanxi Agricultural University, CNOOC (Shanxi) Precious Metals Co., Ltd., and other organizations and social groups, along with agricultural and agricultural technology experts, representatives of foreign businesses, and media reporters, gathered together to jointly explore effective strategies for development.

“Returning to product innovation, I believe that the green and high-quality development of nitro fertilizers requires not only intensified public awareness campaigns to dispel common misconceptions about nitro fertilizers but also greater support at the national level for the industry’s growth. The classification of nitro fertilizers as hazardous chemicals has, to some extent, hindered their high-quality development,” said Li Tengfei, President of the Nitro Calcium-Magnesium Fertilizer Branch of the China Nitrogen Fertilizer Industry Association and General Manager of Huaxin Fertilizer Supply & Marketing Branch. In recent years, China’s annual vegetable and fruit cultivation area has grown by more than 1.5 million mu on average, and nitro fertilizers have become highly favored among farmers in these regions. This is because nitro fertilizers exhibit excellent mobility within crop root systems and do not pose any toxic risks to crops. Even more noteworthy is that nitro fertilizers can neutralize soil acidity by releasing nitrate or bicarbonate ions from the roots, thereby optimizing the rhizosphere pH. Moreover, there are significant differences in performance among various crops. Particularly in cash-crop areas and in southern regions with acidic soils, the advantages of nitro fertilizers are even more pronounced.

According to available data, Jiaocheng Nitro Compound Fertilizer is among the first seven key municipal-level specialized towns in Lüliang City. Relying on abundant coal and nitric acid resources, the county currently has 32 fertilizer production enterprises, with an output value approaching 5 billion yuan and a production capacity reaching 3 million tons. The county boasts 114 new-type fertilizer brands and 102 related technology patents. Among these, calcium-based fertilizers account for over 80% of the domestic market share and more than 50% of the international market share. The product is distributed through over 3,000 sales outlets worldwide, with exports reaching more than 100 countries and regions, including the United States, Russia, the United Kingdom, and Japan. The county has been recognized by the Ministry of Commerce as a national-level base for the transformation and upgrading of foreign trade in the field of new fertilizers, and was designated by the Ministry of Science and Technology as Shanxi Province’s first innovative county. It is renowned as the “Calcium Capital of China.”

According to Director Wang Chaoyang of the Jiaocheng County Investment Promotion Bureau, leveraging its abundant calcium carbonate resources and its position as a leading producer of nitro-based new fertilizers, Jiaocheng County is now making every effort to build itself into a specialized town for nitro-based compound fertilizers. Especially since this year, Jiaocheng County has been steadfastly pursuing project development and attracting investment, planning and implementing 93 key projects with a total investment of 34.815 billion yuan. Leading officials at the county level have taken the initiative to travel to Shanghai, Zhejiang, and other regions to carry out investment promotion activities, continuously strengthening the project pipeline. With strong support from the County Party Committee and the County Government, three major coking enterprises—Meijin, Huaxin, and Jinyang—are implementing technological upgrading projects in their coking operations, thereby driving the transformation and upgrading of upstream chemical industries. Meanwhile, chemical companies such as Dongjin, Hongxing, Sanxi, and Bingsheng are launching projects aimed at product upgrades and capacity expansions, comprehensively extending the chemical industry’s value chain.

Song Zhijiang, Deputy Secretary of the Jiaocheng County Party Committee and County Mayor, stated that Jiaocheng County enjoys advantages in platform development, industrial chain integration, technology, talent, and logistics for the high-quality development of nitro-based compound fertilizers. It is projected that within five years, the county’s nitro fertilizer production capacity will exceed 5 million tons. At that time, Jiaocheng’s specialized town for nitro-based compound fertilizers will become the world’s largest and most influential flagship producer of green fertilizers.

In the afternoon of the 15th, Li Tengfei, President of the Nitro Calcium-Magnesium Fertilizer Branch, chaired the Nitro Green Fertilizer Summit Forum. Industry experts delivered special lectures on topics including “Ensuring Grain Security and Supply: Opportunities for Nitro Fertilizers,” “Nutrient Characteristics and Application Prospects of Nitro Fertilizers,” and “The Positive Role of Platinum Group Metal Catalysts in the Green, Low-Carbon, and Circular Development of the Nitro Fertilizer Industry.” Attendees engaged in in-depth discussions. Experts from the industry, manufacturing enterprises, technology and equipment providers, and other relevant organizations exchanged views extensively on new nitro specialty fertilizers, production and operational conditions in related downstream industries, energy-saving and safety/environmental protection technologies, market and industrial development trends, and the promotion of new fertilizers. This exchange holds profound significance for Jiaocheng’s nitro fertilizers as they move toward global markets.

Li Tengfei stated that the enormous potential of nitro-based green fertilizers has become a hot spot for industry development, particularly for cash crops, where nitro fertilizers are highly competitive. As a result, large quantities of high-quality ecological nitro fertilizers are selling briskly overseas, accounting for nearly half of the global market. However, domestically, the commercial value of these premium nitro fertilizers remains largely unknown to manufacturers, making it a vast “underground gold mine.” Huaxin Fertilizer is committed to being a pioneer, an explorer, and a leader, working together with peers to squarely face various challenges, jointly overcome development bottlenecks, build platforms for resource sharing, and steer the industry toward high-quality growth.

Li Tengfei emphasized that the future of nitro fertilizers should feature ecological friendliness, green efficiency, specialized nutrient functions, enhanced effectiveness for specific crops, the ability to meet precise application requirements, and high comprehensive utilization value. In recent years, Huaxin Fertilizer Industry has successfully launched two innovative functional nitro fertilizers through technological advancements, sparking a market boom and winning widespread acclaim from users. He believes that breaking through the bottlenecks in product transformation and upgrading is an essential hurdle that nitro fertilizers must overcome to achieve high-quality development. For example, issues such as the comprehensive utilization of phosphogypsum in the production of ammonium phosphate fertilizers, preventing caking in nitro fertilizers, achieving full water solubility, and addressing the challenge of combining rapid-release with long-lasting effects all need to be tackled.

At the summit, Li Tengfei, Chairman of the Nitro Calcium-Magnesium Fertilizer Branch and General Manager of Huaxin Fertilizer Sales & Supply Branch, joined leaders from 17 other sister organizations in participating in the signing ceremony, jointly ushering in a new chapter for the development of Jiaocheng’s green nitro fertilizer industry.