Balanced crop nutrition and reduced nitrogen use to assist farmers, says Yara MD
New Delhi, June 23
Delivering scientific knowledge to the farming community is crucial to changing the current trend of overusing subsidized fertilizers and addressing shifting agro-climatic conditions across India, according to Sanjiv Kanwar, Managing Director of Yara South Asia.
Speaking to ANI at the sidelines of the FICCI India Innovative Crop Nutrition Conclave 2026, Kanwar emphasised that balanced nutrition serves as the actual pathway to rising agricultural productivity rather than increasing the application of urea.
Kanwar stated that a major overspending occurs on the nitrogen side of agriculture, pointing to an imbalanced fertilizer application ratio of 10:4:1 in the country. Authorities have identified around 100 districts where nitrogen usage is far higher than standard requirements, necessitating a quick reduction in its application.
"We are a urea producer in India, but we are the first people to say, we do not want you guys to use five bags of urea when just two bags are enough," Kanwar said.
The shift toward lesser conventional fertiliser usage requires the introduction of innovative alternatives that maintain or improve field output while safeguarding soil health against climate stress.
"Every granule or every milliliter of innovative fertilizers that goes onto the crop will lead to a reduction of application of subsidized fertilizers," Kanwar stated. "That is how we need to find a balance."
To achieve this balance, the company executes about 72,000 farmer engagement activities annually, averaging 200 daily connecting points via meetings, melas, and direct field demonstrations.
"Once you deliver knowledge to the farmer, we have to keep in mind that whether the farmer is seventh pass or a graduate or a postgraduate. A farmer is a business person. He or she knows the value of investment and they seek a return on that," Kanwar said.
"If you will go and try to sell something or get them to do something in which they will not see the return, there's a pushback," he added.
Rising rural literacy rates and the flow of nearly 50,000 agriculture graduates annually from 750 domestic institutes have altered farmer behavior, making agriculturists more receptive to scientific evidence and modern technology.
The company plans to broaden its focus toward biostimulants and biologicals in its pipeline to mitigate severe environmental stress on crops.
"Agriculture is coming under deep stress because of nature changing itself and biologicals is one, bio-streaming is one way that we can help the farmers combat the change in agro-climatic conditions," Kanwar said.
— ANI
Reader Comments
The 10:4:1 ratio is alarming! We've been feeding nitrogen to death. As an agri student, I've seen how this destroys soil microbiology. Yara's 72,000 farmer engagements a year is impressive, but we need thousands more such initiatives. The real challenge is changing mindset of farmers who think "more urea = more yield". Knowledge delivery to the grassroots is key.
Good to see Indian agriculture moving towards precision. In States like Punjab and Haryana, we've paid the price for overusing nitrogen - water table depletion, soil degradation. Kanwar's point about farmers being smart business people is spot on. They'll adopt if they see ROI. The 100 high-nitrogen districts need immediate intervention.
This is a great initiative! However, I'm cautiously optimistic. We've seen many corporate promises to Indian farmers but ground reality is different. The company says "don't use 5 bags, use 2" - but will their product be accessible to small farmers in remote villages? Also, biostimulants sound promising for climate stress, but we need field trials in Indian conditions.
Interesting read. The shift towards biologicals and biostimulants is the future. India's agriculture graduates (50,000 annually) can be change agents if properly deployed. But the subsidy regime needs reform - you can't expect farmers to reduce urea when it's cheap and easily available. Need a carrot and stick approach.
My uncle is a farmer in Tamil Nadu and he says the soil has become like concrete because of years of urea abuse
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