THE WHAT? India is accelerating efforts to reduce its dependence on urea fertiliser as disruption linked to the Iran war drives up import costs and raises concerns over security of supply.
THE DETAILS The government is encouraging farmers to adopt natural farming methods that could reduce urea consumption by 25–50 percent, while also authorising the direct agricultural use of anhydrous ammonia for three years. India is currently trialling green anhydrous ammonia across crops including wheat, rice, sugarcane and maize, with early results described as encouraging. However, large-scale adoption faces significant barriers, including limited domestic green ammonia supply, infrastructure requirements, safety concerns and the economics of switching away from heavily subsidised urea.
THE WHY? The shift highlights how geopolitical disruption to energy and fertiliser markets is accelerating India’s search for alternative agricultural inputs, potentially creating longer-term opportunities for green ammonia, natural farming technologies and more efficient fertiliser systems.
Source: Nikkei Asia
