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Advanced POLY4 Crop Nutrition Shows Agronomic Advantages in Global Crop Trials

The nutrient-packed fertilizer will be available exclusively to ADM customers.
By ADM Grain Marketing
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Today’s ADM Farm Direct Fertilizer program offers farmers an opportunity to buy their fertilizer inputs like Urea and Potash in bulk to realize savings. In recent months, ADM has launched a user-friendly calculator to help producers make informed decisions about their fertilizer needs and an e-commerce portal to check product options, prices, availability and to request quotes or orders.

In the next few years, ADM will be expanding its line of fertilizers to include a new multi-nutrient, low-chloride fertilizer called POLY4 that provides essential nutrients necessary for healthy plant growth. OMRI registered, POLY4 will also support organic farming practices. ADM will be the exclusive distributor of POLY4 in North America.

POLY4 will be produced by Anglo American at the Woodsmith mine in the UK. Derived from a naturally occurring mineral polyhalite, POLY4 is a low-chloride source of four of the six essential macronutrients required for plant growth: potassium, sulfate-sulfur, magnesium, and calcium. The nutrients are released in a gradual and sustained way, so crops receive season-long nutrition, as and when required.

As a new brand entering the competitive global fertilizer market, Anglo American Crop Nutrients’ global crop science program has been conducting multi-year crop trials to build a body of evidence that shows POLY4’s effectiveness in enhancing regional fertilizer programs and improving crop performance, yields, and quality.

The results of POLY4’s latest global crop trials were recently covered by Fertilizer International magazine and showed ongoing confidence increasing production and broader distribution to North America, South America, Europe, Africa, the Middle East, China, India, Southeast Asia, and Australasia. 

So far, a total of 606 technical and product development trials, and 493 commercial demonstrations of POLY4 have been carried out across the globe to see how the product can be adapted at regional levels with different types of crops. To date, Anglo American has tested 76 different crops across 34 countries, with 22 of them in North America.

Before initiating each trial, Anglo American’s crop scientists first gain a thorough understanding of farming systems and practices in each region, which includes learning about the variety of crops grown, farm economics, availability of fertilizer, soil conditions, local agronomic advice, typical weather patterns, and application recommendations.

Overall, the results are showing POLY4 is a flexible product and that customized applications can be tailored to meet the needs of growers and their respective communities. At the micro level, the trials are assessing yield results and added value improvements that can complement farmers’ current approaches.

For example, the trials looked at the impact of switching fertilizer sources in different blends. POLY4 can effectively displace sulfur-based products and complement potassium supply while supporting higher nutrient uptake.

In the United States, POLY4 can help improve farmers’ return on investment and simplify fertilizer applications while still increasing productivity. With its sustained release of sulfate-sulfur, POLY4 can be blended with other P and K sources and applied to fields in the fall. This improves efficiency by reducing the number of field passes and eliminating the need to apply sulfur fertilizer in the spring.      

Furthermore, Anglo American’s corn trials with 15 research and commercial farms in Iowa, Illinois, and Minnesota between 2015 and 2019, showed POLY4 crop nutrition plan improved the average yield by approximately 9.9 bu/ac or an increase of 4.5 percent when compared to the standard NPK application. In the end, the corn yield increased with larger kernels and more kernels on the cobs.

Beyond its nutrient value, POLY4 can help protect the soil and the wider environment. There is no chemical processing during production of POLY4 and the manufacturing carbon footprint is significantly lower compared to standard fertilizers. From uniform granule packed with nutrients to uniform nutrient distribution on the field, POLY4 offers solutions and supports sustainable agricultural practices. 

To learn more about POLY4’s latest crop trials, you can read the full article. For more information about POLY4, go to poly4.com. 

ADM is providing this communication for informational purposes, and it is not a solicitation or offer to purchase or sell commodities. The recommendations in this communication do not take into account any particular individual’s or company’s objectives or needs, which should be considered before engaging in any commodity transactions based on these recommendations. The sources for the information and recommendations in this communication are believed to be reliable, but ADM does not warrant or guarantee the accuracy of the information or recommendations. ADM or its affiliates may hold or take positions for their own accounts that are different from the positions recommended in this communication. The information and recommendations in this communication are subject to change without notice.