| 5 ARABLE » Arhee Farming Harvest 2024. Innovation in Fertiliser Efficiency Promises Major Gains for Farmers If you buy a beer, would you tip 65% down the drain? It's a question that Shane Harold from Fert Wholesale Direct regularly asks farmers and he hasn't had anyone say yes yet. But it's what most farmers are doing with their fertiliser every day, he says. This stark comparison highlights a critical ine iciency in New Zealand farming. After 40 years in the fertiliser industry, including 26 years with a major co-op, Shane established Fert Wholesale Direct to revolutionise how farmers access and apply fertiliser. "In New Zealand when we apply normal granular urea to pasture and achieve a ten to one response it is only using 35% of the nitrogen applied," explains Shane. "We were achieving 10 to one back in the 80s when I was at university so we haven't improved." The company's groundbreaking, patented ONEsystem technology used by Fert Wholesale Direct is changing this equation dramatically. In independent trials, the system has more than doubled the standard response rate to 23:1, representing a signi icant advancement in nutrient e iciency. The innovation lies in the product selected and application method. ONEsystem uses prilled urea, which contains ten times more granules than conventional urea, combined with NBPT (a urease inhibitor) applied during spreading. The timing of the application is crucial, says Shane, as it maximises the inhibitor's e ectiveness. Operating in Southland, Central Otago, and Canterbury, the system has proven so successful that it has been utilised for a number of years by a company in Victoria, Australia. The technology ensures better coverage and reduced ammonia volatilization, while enabling some foliar uptake as the prills dissolve on plant leaves. The importance of sulphur is another focus for Fert Wholesale Direct. "The rule of thumb is that you need one kilogram of sulphur for every four kilograms of nitrogen to maximise pasture growth on sulphur de icient soils," says Shane. "If you don't have that ratio the response to nitrogen is decreased signi icantly." This understanding has led Fert Wholesale Direct to develop fertiliser products that maintain this crucial ratio in every granule. The company has also introduced variable rate application technology for phosphate and potassium, applying nutrients only where needed, guided by instant soil testing capability. The business model itself represents an innovation in the industry. "We o er fertilisers at today's world prices, without the need to have capital tied up in ownership," says Shane. “This allows farmers to lock in fertiliser products through contractual relationships at current world prices, potentially achieving signi icant savings in farm expenses.” With his agricultural degree from Massey University focusing on New Zealand soils, Shane brings deep expertise to the challenge of improving nutrient e iciency. His mission is to increase farm productivity while protecting the environment, a balance that becomes increasingly crucial as farming faces growing environmental scrutiny. As New Zealand agriculture grapples with the twin challenges of maintaining productivity and reducing environmental impact, Shane says that innovations like ONEsystem suggest that sometimes the solution lies not in using more, but in using smarter. Farmers, are you concerned about improving your fertiliser ef ciency and environmental footprint? The ONE System which through independent trials shows a doubling of response to N. And more recently, our Revolutionary Compound Urea/SOA product where every granule contains both forms of N. Then Fert Wholesale Direct Ltd can help.
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