Feeding the world’s growing population

New Zealand’s reputation as a quality food producer is growing.

Optimising food production

Over the next 50 years farmers around the world will need to produce more food than has been grown over the past 10,000 years.

Best use from a limited resource

Fertiliser helps farmers produce food efficiently by replenishing the soil. But fertiliser needs to be used responsibly.

Responsible and sustainable nutrient management

The Fertiliser Association invests in research and tools to ensure farm profitability while minimising nutrient losses to the environment.

The Fertiliser Association of New Zealand promotes and encourages responsible and scientifically-based nutrient management.

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Research

Ongoing scientific research is critical to New Zealand agriculture. The Fertiliser Association of New Zealand allocates more than one million dollars annually for research. Areas of focus include environmental mitigation, precision agriculture, management tools, data collection and reporting, managing contaminants and agronomic performance.

We aim to:

  • facilitate major beneficial changes in nutrient management practices
  • drive significant innovation in systems and tools for nutrient management
  • deliver direct benefits for farmers – financial, environmental and technological.

As well as funding research, we develop New Zealand capability by supporting PhD research on nutrient management. We also support Overseer, an agricultural management tool that encourages better decision making.

Research Projects

Planting forest to sequester carbon, either for carbon farming or directly offsetting farm emissions, is likely to increase, a new study from AgFirst, Groundtruth and Market Economics.

Sam Carrick, Linda Lilburne, Gerard Grealish, Pierre Roudier, Veronica Penny, Nadia Laubscher - Landcare Research
Completed June 2020

Phil Journeaux, AgFirst
Completed June 2020

Phil Journeaux, AgFirst

Completed May 2020

Malcolm McLeod, Manaaki Whenua - Landcare Research
Completed March 2020

Jim R Crush & Lily Ouyamg, AgResearch Ruakura, Hamilton, Greig Cousins, PGGWrightson Seeds, Grasslands Research Centre, Palmerston North
Completed October 2019

Stewart Ledgard and Shelley Falconer
Completed August 2019

Phil Journeaux (lead author), John Wilton, Leander Archer, Stuart Ford and Gary McDonald
Completed November 2019

Tony van der Weerden, Bob Longhurst & Martin Kear
Completed May 2019

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The Fertiliser Association of New Zealand and Dairy NZ funded development of the Nutrient Management Adviser Certification Programme (NMACP). This industry-wide certification aims to ensure that advisers have the learning, experience and capability to give sound nutrient advice.

Find out more

15 March 2023

The Fertiliser Association of New Zealand has published a revised and updated Code of Practice for fertiliser nutrient management, replacing the previous version published in 2013.

The Code was launched at an event in Wellington on 13 March 2023, attended by the Minister of Agriculture, Hon Damien O’Connor.

Minister O’Connor welcomed the publication of the Code, saying it was important good guidance is available for all farm inputs for farmers and the wider sector.

He described farming – producing food for communities and the world – as the most noble of professions. Farmers were dealing with challenges every day and providing them with tools and knowledge was important, he said.

The Code is a key resource tool for the management of nutrients on arable and pastoral farms, horticulture and viticulture blocks, and market gardens.

Association Chief Executive Vera Power says the revised Code provides clear principle-based guidance on supplying nutrients for growing healthy food and fibre.

“Following the Code provides users, regulatory authorities and markets confidence that the nutrients used in Aotearoa New Zealand primary production are managed in a way that minimises adverse environmental impacts,” says Dr Power.

“We believe all New Zealand farmers and growers want to meet societal and their own high expectations for growing healthy food while minimising environmental impacts. Supporting all our aspirations remains at the heart of the guidance provided by this Code.”

The revised Code has had extensive input from  agricultural and scientific experts, regulators and industry groups. It can be downloaded from the Association website at www.fertiliser.org.nz

7 September 2022

The 2022 AgriTechNZ Baseline of Digital Adoption in Primary Industries report was released in August.

Created as part of a study by AgriTechNZ and insights partner Research First, the report was co-designed with partners The Fertiliser Association of New Zealand, Zespri, The Foundation of Arable Research and DairyNZ. It was also supported by the Ministry for Primary Industries as part of the Sustainable Food and Fibre Futures initiative (SFFF).

The 60-page report looks at digital adoption, including key drivers and barriers across the dairy, horticulture, arable and beef/sheep sectors.

You can download the report here.

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