How we use, or misuse nutrients can contribute to and be affected by all three aspects of the triple planetary crisis: climate change, nature and biodiversity loss, and pollution and waste.
Nutrients are natural chemical substances essential to sustaining life that are needed by plants, animals, and people. Macronutrients are needed by plants in larger quantities, whereas Micronutrients like boron, manganese and zinc are still vital for healthy growth but needed in smaller quantities.
Discussions on nutrient management tend to focus on Nitrogen and Phosphorus - around half of the world’s food security is dependent on these two nutrients. Important nutrient cycles have been disrupted by human activities, such as the misuse of fertilizers, resulting in increased volumes of runoff and wastewater.
Globally, only around 20% of nitrogen compounds reach useful products, with 80% lost to the environment. In addition, 1 in 7 farmers cannot afford nor access the phosphorus they need – particularly smallholder farmers in developing countries. Yet despite being a finite resource, up to as much as 80% of the phosphorus input is being lost or wasted.
