ZNI Newsletter, No. 10, April 2013

issue no.10 April 2013

zinc nutrient initiative

China

IZA Participates in World Bank Sustainable Development Session on Nutrition

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Zinc Fertilizer Recommendation for Spring ‘13

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IZA/MoA Workshop

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Zinc Nutrient Award

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Brazil

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Fertilizer Latin America 2013

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NewAg Conference & Exhibition

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New Sugarcane Factsheet

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India

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‘Doubling Food Production in 5 Years’

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‘High Zinc’ Rice and Wheat Cultivers

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Nutri-farms to fight malnutrition

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Global

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New Members

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Country Spotlight: Thailand

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Upcoming Events

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Dr. Andrew Green, Director of IZA’s Zinc Nutrient Initiative, participated on a World Bank expert panel in Washington D.C. titled: “How can agriculture help to solve the nutrition crisis: What we know and what we need to know.” The audience was primarily World Bank country directors and project task managers who design and support government development projects.

The event provided an opportunity to highlight the critical role zinc plays in health and crop nutrition and showcase IZA’s Zinc Nutrient Initiative activities. Future meetings are planned with World Bank staff to discuss integration of zinc into their agricultural projects. For more information, please contact Dr. Andrew Green.

CHINA MoA continues recommendation for zinc fertilizer for Spring 2013 China’s Ministry of Agriculture (MoA) recently released their “2013 Scientific Fertilizer Recommendation Guideline for Spring Crop Production” developed by the Soil Testing and Fertilizer Recommendation and Technology Expert Advisory Board. In continuance of the recommendation guidelines started in 2012, zinc fertilizer is recommended for rapeseed, wheat and rice productions at a rate of 15 to 30 kg ZnSO4/ha. IZA began a cooperative project with MoA on promotion of zinc fertilizer use in Chinese agriculture in 2010, which Rapeseed crops has advanced zinc fertilizer use in crop production through numerous research, extension and education programs. For more information, contact Dr. Ming Fan.

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MoA / IZA Workshop Features Latest Developments of Zinc Fertilizer Research More than 150 agricultural researchers, extension professionals and fertilizer industry leaders attended a workshop co-organized by IZA and China National Agricultural Technology Extension and Service Center (NATESC) in Hangzhou China in March. During the conference, delegates learned the latest results from the joint ongoing zinc fertilizer project.

In 2012, zinc fertilizer increased crop yields by an average of 8.4% in 24 field trials and 46 demonstration plots in 14 provinces. Zinc fertilizer also increased Zn concentrations in grains from 15% to 50%, with variations attributed to differing crops, zinc fertilizer application rates and methods.

In addition to increasing yield and grain concentration, zinc fertilizer also increased economic returns in all tested crops with a benefit-to-cost ratio ranging from 10 to 19 Yuan for grain crops to a high of 130 Yuan for vegetable crops. Zinc fertilizer application by the fertigation method achieved the highest increase in yield and economic returns. For more information, please contact Dr. Ming Fan. Zinc Fertilizer Workshop Hangzhou, China March 4-5, 2013 Pictured Left to Right: Dr. Gao Xiangzhao, MOA; Mr. Huang Guoyang, Agricultural Technology Extension and Service Center of Zhejiang Province; Mr. Wang Jindeng, MOA; Mr. Hang Dapeng, MOA; Mr. Chen Lijiang, Agricultural Dept. Zhejiang Province; Dr. Andrew Green, IZA; and Dr. Ming Fan, IZA.

IZA-CPNFS Zinc Nutrient Award for Distinguishing Chinese Scientists and Extension Workers To encourage and recognize outstanding scientific research and extension work on plant nutrient zinc and zinc fertilizer technology in China, IZA and the China Plant Nutrition and Fertilizer Society (CPNFS) has established the Zinc Nutrient Award.

The award will be presented to Chinese scientists and agricultural technology extension workers making significant contributions to zinc nutrient research and practice, including achievements and published works. The CPNFS will select the recipients and present an award of RMB 2,000 at their bi-annual conference. For more information, please contact Dr. Ming Fan.

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BRAZIL Zinc in plant nutrition highlighted in newspaper of world’s largest coffee co-op Cooxupé, the largest coffee cooperative in the world with more than 12 thousand members, published an article on zinc in plant nutrition in their newspaper.

The article emphasized the importance of zinc in the coffee crop, raising the best practices in the application of this nutrient via soil and foliar methods as well as the critical levels in the soils. The article was coauthored by MSc. Alysson Vilela Fagundes, researcher from the Fundação Procafé, and Joao Moraes, Director of ZNI-Brazil. To view this issue of Cooxupé, please click here.

IZA Supports Fertilizer Latin America 2013 Over 600 participants from more than 50 countries attended the Fertilizer Latin America 2013 conference and exhibition, which for the first time was held in Brazil.

IZA supported this event, which was organized by CRU in collaboration with Argus FMB. The event included presentations from leaders of public and private sectors and covered such topics as New Fertilizer Projects, Logistics and Infrastructure, and Perspectives in the Demand for Special Fertilizers in Latin America. For more information, please contact Joao Moraes.

IZA attends New Ag Conference and Exhibition, held in Latin America for first time Held for the first time in the Latin America, the 11th New Ag Conference and Exhibition attracted agribusiness professionals from more than 45 countries.

According to Marilia Nutti, Senior Researcher of Embrapa and Leader of Harvest Plus in Latin America, “zinc is one of the most important nutrients used in the Biofortification plans for the region.” Nutti highlighted the efforts on expanding the use of biofortified food in the meals of Brazilian public elementary schools and noted the increasing investment of Harvest Plus in Latin America for the 2014–2018 phase. In attendance were several of IZA’s ZNI member companies, including Mosaic, Produquímica, Agrichem, Deepak, Omex, and IZA’s Associated member Abisolo which supported the event. For more information, please contact Joao Moraes.

New Ag Conference and Exhibition, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. March 13-15, 2013.

Pictured Left to Right: Dr. Ismail Cakmak, Marilia Nutti, and Dr. Andrew Green

New Fact Sheet on Zinc in Sugarcane A new Fact Sheet on sugarcane based on Brazilian experience with the use of zinc fertilizers and sugarcane is now available in both English and Portuguese. The bulletin was authored by Dr. Estêvão Vicari Mellis, in cooperation with Drs. Josá A.

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Quaggio and Luiz A. Junqueira Teixeira from Agronomical Institute of Campinas (IAC) – one of the oldest and most important research institutions in Brazil. The recommendation from the a u t h o r s raises the zinc dose from 5 Kg/ha to 10 Kg/ha. This recommendation was apparent after seven out of 11 different locations evaluated with different soil types in Sao Paulo State (main producer of sugar cane in Brazil) showed an average increase of 16 tons of sugar cane per hectare with the increased dose. Dr. Estêvão continues his experiments with the best practices in the use of zinc and other micronutrients with different sources in order to come up with more information on the sources and best application methods. To obtain this fact sheet in Portuguese, click here. For English, click here. A Spanish version will be available soon.

INDIA IZA participates in ‘Doubling Food Production in Five Years’ Conference addressed by President of India Stressing the need for the nation’s food and nutritional security, the President of India, Mr. Pranab Mukherjee, addressed the ‘Doubling Food Production in Five Years’ Conference in February in New Delhi, India. The conference was jointly organized by the Crop Care Federation of India and the Ministry of Agriculture and was attended by about 500 delegates from agriculture and allied sectors.

Emphasizing necessity of the proposed Food Bill, President Mukherjee noted that 1% growth in the agriculture sector was 2 to 3 times more effective in reducing poverty than similar growth in any other sector. The Union Minister for Agriculture, Mr. Sharad Pawar acknowledged that food security was a major concern for the nation and stressed the need to adopt modern agricultural practices to enhance yields.

The Minister of State for Chemicals and Fertilizers, Mr. Shrikant Kumar Jena highlighted the role of publicprivate partnerships in achieving the goal of doubling food production in five years. The key issues focused in the conference included balanced fertilizer use, malnutrition, and zinc nutrient use.

The President of India, Mr. Pranab Mukherjee giving an address at the ‘Doubling Food Production in Five Years’ Conference in New Delhi, India. February 2013.

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Key panelists included: Dr. Patrick Moore, Chairman of Greenspirit, USA; Dr. Mauricio Antonio Lopes, President of EMBRAPA, Brazil; Dr. Lisa Dreier, Director of World Economic Forum, USA; Dr. R.B. Singh, Former Additional Director General of FAO; Dr. Peter Kenmore, FAO Representative in India and Dr. S. Ayyappan, Director General of ICAR, Govt. of India. For more information, please contact Dr. Soumitra Das.

‘High Zinc’ Rice and Wheat Cultivars Released in India in 2013 A workshop on “Improving public health through biofortification: A novel costeffective and sustainable approach” was organized by HarvestPlus in New Delhi in February. It was addressed by Prof M.S. Swaminathan, Father of Indian Green Revolution, Member of Parliament, and Chairman of the M S Swaminathan Research Foundation.

HarvestPlus announced the release of High Zinc Wheat and Rice cultivars in India in 2013. High zinc wheat and rice are bred to increase the uptake of zinc through soil. Through biofortification, HarvestPlus is developing micronutrient-rich varieties of staple food crops that millions of poor people eat every day. Biofortification is a cost-effective solution to reduce hidden hunger on a large scale by making foods that poor people rely upon more nutritious.

“Father of Indian Green Revolution” Prof M.S. Swaminathan, addressing the gathering at the HarvestPlus Meeting in New Delhi, India. February 27, 2013.

Overall, HarvestPlus and its partners are developing six micronutrient-rich staple food crops for Africa and South Asia. These micronutrient-rich crops will first be released in select target countries. Subsequently, they can be released in spillover countries with similar agro-ecologies or tailored to local conditions through adaptive breeding.

With the partnership of International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), HarvestPlus will release high zinc rice in India and Bangladesh in 2013. Similarly, with International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) as a partner, it will release high zinc wheat in India and Pakistan.

It is envisioned that 10 years after release, more than 200 million people in India and Bangladesh will be consuming high zinc rice. It is estimated that high zinc wheat varieties will be consumed by about 120 million Indians 10 years after release. For more information on HarvestPlus activities in India, please contact Dr. Soumitra Das.

Nutri-farms to Introduce Zinc Rich Crops in India to Fight Malnutrition An intervention to fight malnutrition caused by micronutrient deficiency through agricultural technology has, for the first time, found a place in the Indian budget.

Indian Finance Minister Mr. P. Chidambaram has allocated INR 200 Crore (USD 36

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million) for starting pilot programs on Nutri-farms. The idea for nutri-farms is based on bio-fortification technology, in which a crops are enriched with micronutrients.

Mr. Chidambaram, in his Budget speech presented to the Indian parliament in February, said that eminent agricultural scientists have suggested that India should start a pilot program on Nutri-farms for introducing new micronutrient-rich crop varieties such as zinc-rich wheat, protein-rich maize and iron-rich pearl millet.

He asked the Union Ministry of Agriculture, Govt. of India to formulate a scheme and start pilots in districts most affected by malnutrition.

Connect with ZNI and join the ongoing global discussion about zinc in fertilizers, crops, and human health.

Mr. P. Chidambaram, Indian Finance Minister, presenting the Union Budget 2013-14 in the Indian parliament.

GLOBAL ZNI Welcomes New Members Wolf Trax Innovative Micronutrients recently joined IZA as an Affiliate Member of the ZNI program. Headquartered in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Wolf Trax produces micronutrients and plant nutrition products backed by sound agronomic research and technical support. To learn more about Wolf Trax, visit www.wolftrax.com.

OCP Group, a global leader in phosphates extraction and transformation, recently became ZNI’s first Affiliate Member in Africa. OCP is headquartered in Casablanca, Morocco, but operates all over the world. OCP produces four kinds of fertilizers from phosphoric acid. To learn more about OCP, please visit www.ocpgroup.ma/en.

Hubei Forbon Technology Co.,Ltd. located in Ying Cheng, Hubei province, China, is the National Key High-tech Enterprise of national Torch project, specialized in the R&D, manufacturing, marketing and serving of fertilizer additives.

To learn more about Hubei Forbon Technology Company, visit: www.forbon.com.

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country spotlight: a look at zinc deficiency in countries around the world

Thailand

• 42% of the population in Thailand is at risk of zinc deficiency.1 • Rice is the most important economic crop in Thailand and is widely grown in all regions, covering about 50% of the country’s cultivated area.2 • Other major field crops are cassava, corn, sugar cane, oil crops and perennial trees such as para rubber, and fruit trees.2 • Approximately 90 percent of the rural people, or 5.2 million farm families, earn their income through subsistence farming, particularly rice cultivation and other field crop production 2 • Field experiments conducted by Sillanpää in 1990 found either acute or latent zinc deficiency in all 15 sites studied in Thailand.

Paddy rice soils are most susceptible. Other crops at risk of zinc deficiency are cassava, maize, and sugarcane.3 • ZNI/IZA has done a number of crop trials with zinc fertilizers in Thailand which typically showed an increase in crop production of 10% or greater in zinc-deficient soils.

• Padaeng Industry Public Co., Ltd., a Member of IZA, has played a key role in the ZNI efforts in Thailand, including help in coordinating crop trials and meetings.

1. Source: IZiNCG, 2004 2. Source: Crop Diversification in the Asia-Pacific Region. FAO. April 2001. http://www.fao.org/docrep/003/x6906e/x6906e00. htm#Contents 3. Source: Alloway, B. Zinc in Soils and Crop Nutrition. 2008

Upcoming Events • 6th Symposium on Technologies on Sugar Cane Production, (VI Simpósio Tecnologia de Produção de Cana de Açúcar) Piracicaba-SP, July 10-12, 2013.

For more information, please visit: http://www.simposiocana.com.br/.

• 5th Abisolo Forum, (V Fórum Abisolo), Ribeirão Preto-SP, August 20-22, 2013.

For more information, visit: http://www.abisolo.com.br/site_2013/index. php/forum-abisolo.

Announcing…

The 4th International Zinc Symposium on Improving Crop Production and Human Health will be held in São Paulo, Brazil in 2014. Look for more information in the coming weeks.

This newsletter is published by The International Zinc Association (IZA), a non-profit organization headquartered in Brussels, Belgium.

IZA launched the Zinc Nutrient Initiative (ZNI) in response to the critical issue of zinc deficiency in soils, crops, and humans. For more information, please visit www.zinc.org/crops, or contact Dr. Andrew Green, Director, ZNI or Teri Kuhn, ZNI Program Coordinator. ©2013.

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