15 June 2023

Lime use at highest rate in 22 years, as fertiliser sales decline

Data from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) have pointed to increases in the quantity of lime being sold while, at the same time, a reduction in fertiliser sales volumes were reported.

Releasing data for 2022 fertiliser sales, the CSO has shown that lime sales were at their highest of the 2020-2022 period in 2022 at 1.4 million tonnes – an increase of 4% on 2021. Furthermore, when compared to 2020, this is a 50% increase.

Although lime sales increased in 2022, figures from the Teagasc Soil Fertility Report 2022, which evaluated the pH of soils submitted for sampling, indicated that 39-57% of soils required lime applications, with a large deficit in lime application on grassland farms existing.

The soil test results showed that 47% of dairy farm samples and 57% drystock farm samples had pH levels below the target pH of greater than 6.3. On tillage farms, overall soil pH levels were higher, yet 39% of soils still remained below the target soil pH of greater than 6.5. Correcting soil pH is critical to increase fertiliser use efficiency and is one of the key steps to achieving agriculture’s target of reducing chemical nitrogen (N) usage by 2030, by which time a target of 325,000t of chemical nitrogen has been set.

Fertiliser sales

The official data also points to a reduction in fertiliser sales over the duration of 2022. The nitrogen (N) content of fertilisers sold in 2022 was 14% lower than in 2021, at 343,193t. The nitrogen content of fertilisers sold in Ireland was 407,598t in 2000. It fell to its lowest level of the period 2000-2022 in 2011 at 295,795t, while it was highest in 2018 at 408,495t.

The phosphorous (P) content of fertilisers sold in 2022 also declined – down 26% on 2021 levels at 34,240t. Phosphorus content was at its highest level of the period 2000-2022 in 2000 at 49,267t and was lowest in 2009 at 20,231t. In addition to P, there were a total of 93,614t of potassium (K) in fertilisers sold in Ireland in 2022.

In addition to the above, total fertiliser sales fell by 18% in 2022 to 1.4 million tonnes. Fertiliser sales were at their highest of the time period 2000-2022 in 2000 at 1.7 million tonnes. They were at their lowest in 2009 at 1.2 million tonnes,  before reaching 1.7 million tonnes again in 2018 and in 2021.