Market Trends of Europe Biofertilizers Industry
The Practice of Organic Farming Increased
A growing movement for sustainable agriculture emerged in recent years, promoting practices that reduce social and environmental concerns over agricultural practices. Over the last three decades, organic food and farming have grown Y-o-Y across Europe. In May 2020, the European Commission's Farm to Fork Strategy mentioned organic as a key sector to achieve the European Green Deal's food ambitions. The strategy states, "The market for organic food is set to continue growing, and organic farming needs to be further promoted.' As part of this strategy, the commission published the 2021-2027 Organic Action Plan to boost organic demand and supply.
Furthermore, increased institutional support is encouraging farmers to adopt organic farming. For instance, according to the Research Institute of Organic Agriculture (FiBL), the area under organic farming was 15.6 million hectares in 2018, which increased by approximately 9.6% and reached 17.1 million hectares in 2020. Moreover, the increasing concerns over food and environmental safety have led to safer field application products such as biofertilizers. Thus, the growing awareness of sustainable production across the regions led to increased adoption of biofertilizers. Therefore, the market is anticipated to grow significantly during the forecast period. In addition to this, increasing incomes, along with improved farming practices, make organic yields more robust. Thus, the increasing demand for organic food has increased the area under organic farming, resulting in increased demand for biofertilizers.
The Mychorrhiza Segment is Expected to Dominate the Market
Mycorrhiza is the most consumed biofertilizer in Europe. It accounted for 62.7% in 2022, with a market value of USD 549.5 million. Mycorrhiza is a fungus that establishes a symbiotic relationship with the plant root system. It increases the root surface area of plants, thus enhancing their nutrient uptake.
Mycorrhiza, also referred to as arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF), can increase crop yields significantly. In Europe, 231 field trials were conducted over four years in potatoes under ideal conditions. The results showed an increased yield of marketable potatoes by 9.5% on average. Mycorrhiza also contributes significantly to plant nutrition, particularly phosphorus uptake. It contributes to the selective absorption of immobile (P, Zn, and Cu) and mobile (S, Ca, K, Fe, Mn, Cl, Br, and N) elements from plants and water uptake.
Mycorrhiza helps reduce the intake of arsenic in plants. According to the US Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), arsenic is considered a carcinogenic agent that poses a threat to human health. Hence, using mycorrhiza helps growers meet food safety standards, thus driving its demand in Europe.
