Organic fertilizer is a category of fermented fertilizers obtained from animal manure and plant/animal residue and the use of organic fertilizers has a long history in China. But in recent decades, the percentage of organic fertilizer in total nutrient input has steadily reduced from 99.9% in 1949 to 20% in 2010 and bottomed at 5% to 10% today. China’s per-unit-area rate of chemical fertilizer is 443.5 kg per hectare, almost 3 times the global average level of 120 kg per hectare and twice the internationally-accepted safety limit of 225 kg per hectare. This gives China an ever-increasing agricultural output at the expense of soil fertility: 26% and 44% of the farmland has the fewest organic matter and organic carbon of less than 1%. 64%, 53% and 40% of the farmland are in serious deficiency of Calcium, Magnesium and Sulphur. Since China launched the “Action Plan for Zero-growth of Chemical Fertilizer and Pesticide Use” in 2015, as well as other agricultural development policies thereafter, this reviving sector has witnessed a double-digital increase for the past few years and the demand would reach 227 Billion Yuan by 2023. In the course of China’s agricultural revitalization of quality enhancement and green development, it is vital for agribusiness enterprises to have a better understanding of the industrial actuality, key driving force and the developing tendency of China’s organic fertilizer market. Industry Characteristics Organic fertilizers can be conceptually classified into 3 commercialized categories: refined organic fertilizer, organic-inorganic compound fertilizers and microbial organic fertilizers and their market percentage were 43.5%, 17.6% and 38.9% respectively: Refined organic fertilizer- Obtained thought the fermentation or decomposition of organic materials and typically formulated into powdery, granular, or liquid form. organic-inorganic compound fertilizer-blended or compounded products of inorganic fe

China uses 6% of the world's water resources, 9% of the world’s farmland and 30% of the world’s chemical fertilizers to produce 26% of the agricultural products in the world. China’s annual irrigation water consumption is 360 billion tons per year but there is still an input gap of 30 billion tons. The agricultural output per water consumption was only 1 kg per ton, half the efficiency that the US and Israel achieved. Despite China leading the world in agrochemical use, with an annual chemical fertilizer consumption of 54 million tons, the average utilization efficiency is merely 30%, about 20 percent lower than in developed countries. The "high consumption but low efficiency" pattern in agricultural production has brought about a huge waste of resources and increased levels of environmental pollution, not to mention the fact that it has become one of the greatest bottlenecks constraining agricultural development. In the "National Strategic Plan for Agricultural Revitalization through Quality Enhancement (2018-2022)”, China planned to improve its fertilizer utilization efficiency to 41% by 2022, which us expected to have encouraging effects on certain agricultural inputs such as water-soluble fertilizers (WSF). Imperative Fertilization and Irrigation Integration The water-saving irrigation strategy was first put forward in 2004 and has been repeatedly emphasized by the “N01 Central Document” for 12 consecutive years. In 2011, China’s NATESC (National Agricultural Technology Extension and Service Center) identified fertilization and irrigation integration as the number one agricultural practice to be deployed nationwide. In 2015, MoA (now known as the MoARA) issued its ambitious “Action Plan for the Zero-growth of Chemical Fertilizer Uses by 2020” which means 5.33 million hectares of the farmland will be treated with an integration of fertilization and irrigation systems and the

The removal of export taxes on chemical fertilizers, the enactment of the “Soil Pollution and Control Law”, and series of new/revised fertilizer standards are bringing far-reaching effects on Chinese fertilizer market, which is invariably moving towards rationalization, high-efficient, specialization and greenization. This article offers an overall conclusion on the likeliest regulatory and market outcomes in 2019, as well as an in-depth analysis of the new tendencies. Liberalization on secondary/micronutrients claim The labeling and marking of all commercial fertilizers should conform to the national standard, “GB 18382-2001 Fertilizer Marking: Presentation and Declaration”. The mandatory standard was promulgated by AQSIQ (now known as SMAR) as early as 2001 when China has not yet developed intact and unified testing methods for secondary/micronutrients. Expedient measures were adopted to protect growers from being misled: Compound or complex fertilizers containing secondary/micronutrients are generally prohibited from claiming on their medium/micronutrient content; Secondary nutrient fertilizers should mark the name and content of each secondary nutrient as well as the total secondary nutrient. If a secondary/micronutrient in a secondary nutrient fertilizer is below 2%/0.02%, the fertilizer shall not be marked with the secondary/micronutrient; Along with the scientific development and the market penetration of secondary/micronutrient fertilizers, both the growers and fertilizer producers have realized the importance of secondary/micronutrient in agricultural production. In late 2017, MIIT and 12 other ministries drafted an amendment to GB 18382, which has been submitted for final approval. The amendment removed the restriction on secondary/micronutrient claims. Considering the time required for a compulsory standard nationwide, the revised standard is very likely to be promulgated this year. Biostimulant is r

Biostimulant includes diverse substances and microorganisms that are utilized for plant enhancement or stimulate natural processes to benefit nutrient uptake, nutrient efficiency, tolerance to abiotic stress, and/or crop quality apart from its “nutrient content”. Although the term “biostimulant” has not yet been defined under any specific regulation in China, these types of products are most frequently marketed as two types of novel fertilizer: microbial fertilizers and water soluble fertilizers. As stipulated under the MoA Order 32 “Measures for the Registration Management on Fertilizer”, products fall into both categories have to be registered with the MoA prior to placement on the market.   Product under Fertilizer Registration Depending on the nature, nutrient element, origin, production process, mechanism, function and availability of official product specification, analytical method of nutrient/functional ingredient, criterion for efficacy evaluation and other considerations, products subject to fertilizer registration should be registered, labeled and marketed under 29 mandatorily generic names(AgroPedia:China Fertlizer Registration Overview): Types Mandatorily Generic Name Macronutrient Water-soluble fertilizer containing nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium* Urea ammonium nitrate solution* Potassium nitrate for agricultural use Modified ammonium nitrate for agriculture* Calcium ammonium nitrate for agriculture use* Magnesium-potassium sulfate for agriculture use Magnesium-potassium chloride for agriculture use Slow-release fertilizer* Synergized nitrogen fertilizer Secondary Element Water-soluble fertilizer containing calcium and magnesium* Fertilizer containing calcium and magnesium Calcium nitrate for agricultural use Magnesium sulfate for agricultural