The world cereal production in 2022 fell by 57 million tonnes (-2.0%) compared with total production in 2021, marking the first fall in three years. Primarily driven by conflicts and extreme weather events, this downgrade in production has increased global demand for cereals and grains.
This rise in demand has led many cereal and grain growers to adopt the application of biofertilizers. Representing over 40% of the market share in terms of application, cereal and grain growers use biofertilizers to stimulate plant development and enhance crop quality. According to a recent study by TMR, it is anticipated that this increased use of biofertilizers in cereal and grain production will drive the global biofertilizers market to grow at a CAGR of 12.2% from 2021 to 2031.
Chemical Fertilizers
As well as global demand, heightened concerns over the rapidly declining quality of our soils due to the overuse of chemical fertilizers and their effect on human health, is also increasing the adoption of biofertilizers. Governments are also promoting this transition to using biofertilizers across various countries to make agriculture more sustainable.
Fertiliser application is important for crop production as it provides key nutrients to support plant growth. However, only some of the nutrients applied through fertilization are used by crops. Those residual chemicals not absorbed run off the agricultural land and into the natural environment, impacting ecosystems and biodiversity. When biofertilizer is applied to crops, it can increase the availability of nutrients and improve crop yields by 10% – 25% without adversely affecting the soil and environment.
Biofertilizers
FA Bio is leading the way in discovering superior microbial biofungicides and biofertilizers, helping to minimise agriculture’s environmental impact whilst sustainably increasing crop productivity. Revolutionising sustainable agriculture, FA Bio is discovering unique soil microbes to develop game-changing bioproducts, pushing the agriculture industry to embrace new innovations and protect our natural ecosystems.
Sustainable farming solutions, such as biofertilizers, can restore the biodiversity of degraded soils and enhance or replace the activity of agrochemical inputs. FA Bio is transforming regenerative agriculture with its study of soil microbes, identifying superior active ingredients for bioproducts that can strengthen the health and resilience of soils whilst increasing crop yields.
Sustainable Agriculture
To affect the greatest impact on our environment, FA Bio is targeting the largest crop industries including wheat and maize across Europe and America. Combining its technology with a targeted sampling approach, FA Bio is discovering hard to access and field-adapted microbes for targeted applications, developing microbes that have superior field activity for desired crops and climates. Its current focus is to discover lead biocontrol candidates specifically for wheat crops.
As the need to solve the agricultural problems of sustainability and productivity becomes ever more urgent with climate change and food insecurity, FA Bio is fulfilling its mission to discover robust microbial biofertilisers and drive the evolution of sustainable agriculture.
