Agrochemicals

Plant chemicals Market Analysis

Plant Chemicals or Agrochemicals are typically chemicals used in the field of agriculture to improve crop yield. These chemicals include insecticides, pesticides, fertilizers, etc. Some of the rudimentary variations of agrichemicals are used to control pests and other living beings that could harm the crop yield.

Agricultural chemicals are generally highly toxic because of which several regulations have been imposed on their usage. Moreover, bulk storage of these chemicals poses a potential health hazard to the inhabitants within the area. Several incidents that state an accidental spill of chemicals have been recorded previously. In several areas across the world, government-issued permits are hereby required to employ these substances.

The misuse or incorrect storage of these chemicals could potentially result in heavy penalties. The storage of these chemicals is also expected to abide by the safety standards imposed by the concerned government. Secure storage accompanied by proper labeling and emergency clean-up facilitates are to be instated while storing these chemicals.

Sumerian farmers were the first ones to make use of sulfur as an insecticide. Additionally, about 3200 years ago the Chinese made use of arsenic and mercury to control body lice. These chemicals were used to increase efficient crop yields in order to feed the growing population. During the 1960s, chemical fertilizers were first employed during the Green Revolution. They were used as a source of essential nutrients for plant growth like nitrogen, phosphorous, and potassium.

The Agrochemicals market has been studied in this report to understand the ongoing market trends and their impacts on the forecast analysis. Chemical market research reports can be essentially used to understand the changing industrial dynamics within each segment. The agrochemical market research reports will hereafter focus on the sub-segments within this industry including pesticides, herbicides, etc. The green technology employed to increase the ecological sustainability of this segment will also be covered.

North America Plant chemicals

The North American plant chemicals sector has been one of the most lucrative markets owing to the growing population within the nation. The region focuses on producing their crops and is one of the largest exporters of the same. Therefore, a significant amount of investment is made in the agricultural domain within this region. The growth rate within the North American market is estimated to be between 4-6%. The country has been trying to deduce an integrated approach towards crop cultivation.

The region has been focusing on the use of sustainable farming methods which could hereafter steadfast the growth associated with this market. The use of green technology and integrated farming is being promoted within this segment owing to the health hazards of crop pesticide residuals. The utilization of Integrated Crop Management (ICM) takes into account all the socio-economic as well as the ecological factors linked to agriculture. The practice helps perform a trade-off analysis between the deciding criteria. ICM focuses on the use of both synthetic as well as organic methods of farming.

The use of plant chemicals is hereafter constrained by several government regulations imposed within this area. For instance, bovine somatotropin, though widely used in the United States, is not approved in Canada and some other jurisdictions as they pose threat to the health of cows within this region. The North American plant chemicals product segment is majorly governed by nitrogenous fertilizers. Nitrogen serves as an important crop nutrient that stimulates growth within plants. It is used within plants for protein synthesis as well as cell wall synthesis. The nutrient also helps in the development of the immature segments of a plant. According to the OECD, the per hectare intake of Nitrogen for the U.S is accounted to be 27.01 kg/hectare. Other chemicals like phosphates have an intake of approximately 2.78 Kg/hectare within the U.S. The overall fertilizer intake within the U.S is accounted to be 138.6 Kg/hectare. The fertilizer consumption within Canada is estimated to be 87.6 Kg/hectare.

In terms of the pesticides, herbicides constitute between 41-45% of the overall market. Fungicides act as the second most prominent segment followed by insecticides. According to a survey performed by the Canadian government (2011), 69% of Canadian crop farms reported applying herbicides, 15% employed insecticides and 23% used fungicides.

Within North America, U.S serves as the largest producer of agrochemicals. This is majorly due to the increased crop cultivation and export within this region. Canda is expected to have the fastest growth rate owing to the rising investments in the agricultural sector. The reduction in the amount of arable land within the U.S and Canda is another factor that propels the growth affiliated with this market. According to data collected from world bank, the arable land accounts for a value of 16.6% as compared to the total land area available within the U.S. The arable land within Canada is only 4% of the total area available, therefore the use of synthetic agricultural practices is necessitated within this region.

Dow AgroSciences is one of the key players in the North American market. The enterprise is a subsidiary of the Dow Chemical Company. The company focuses not only on the development of agrochemicals and pesticides but on seed and biotechnology solutions as well. The company is primarily based in Indianapolis, Indiana, in the United States. Dow AgroSciences produced the first plant cell-based vaccine against the Newcastle disease. The vaccine was produced under the USDA (United States Department of Agriculture) Center for Veterinary Biologics.

The company’s  Enlist Weed Control System was approved by the USDA and the EPA (Environment Protection Agency) in the year 2014. This system focuses on the genetic modification of seeds in order to make them resistant to herbicides. Therefore, on the application of agrochemicals, only the weeds will be affected and the target crop will hereafter remain unharmed.

Agrium is a major retail supplier within North America, South America as well as Australia. The company is a wholesale producer of agricultural nutrients and fertilizers within the North American market. In the year 2018, Agrium merged with PotashCorp to form Nutrien. The company Nutrien is a Canadian fertilizer company and is the largest producer of Potash. The enterprise is also the third-largest producer of nitrogen fertilizer globally. PotashCorp is this majority stakeholder in this M&A. The company accounts to more than 50% shares in Nutrien. The company has 1,500 retail stores and it employs 20,000 people, Globally.

Europe Plant chemicals Market Analysis

The European plant chemicals market is majorly led by Germany and France. Aggradation in terms of agriculture within this region is due to the increased investment and research within these segments. The percentage of arable land within Germany is accounted to be 33.7% and for France the numbers amount to 33.5%. These values are much higher as compared to the rest of the EU. Spain, Italy, and the United Kingdom are some other countries within this region that focus on agricultural development. The percentage arable land within these regions amounts to a value of 24.7%, 22.4%, and 24.9% respectively.

Moreover, the percentage of crops that are damaged due to pests is higher as compared to other regions due to the climate within this segment. For every degree Celsius rise in temperature, the crop yield reduces by roughly 2.5% according to the Science Journal. On a holistic scale, more than 30% of wheat crop loss has been recorded within the EU. The crops lost through plant infestation account for 42% of the world’s calorie consumption worldwide. Additionally, crop loss causes a loss in terms of investment since a lot of labor is invested in cultivating them. Therefore, pest infestation acts as one of the key factors that promote the use of agrochemicals.

Agrochemicals are essentially composed of harmful toxins which on excess consumption can destroy the harvest as well. These chemicals are not only harmful to the plant but also the surrounding environment. Thus, measures like the Integrated Farming System that promote the crop cultivation within a small landscape are encouraged by the government. The main objective of the European Organic Agricultural Standard is to deliver sustainable agricultural solutions for crop harvest. Other forms of Integrated Pest Management (IPM) and Integrated Crop Management (ICM) are also being employed by the EU to increase their crop yields effectively.

The Cereal yield per hectare for countries like Germany and France amount to a value of 7270 Kg/hectare and 6875 Kg/hectare respectively. The crop yield within the United Kingdom accounts for 7229 Kg/hectare. On the contrary, countries like Spain and Italy have a lower cereal yield comparatively. The countries have a yield of around 2769 Kg/hectare and 5171 Kg/hectare respectively. Subsequently, the fertilizer consumption within Germany and France has a value of 197.2 Kg/hectare and 163.1 Kg/hectare. Therefore, the use of agrochemicals in combination with other agricultural practices like irrigation promotes crop cultivation.

According to the chemical market forecast, the fertilizer segment is led by nitrogenous fertilizers,  chemical market forecast also states that the nitrogen balance per hectare for the UK is accounted to be 86 Kg/hectare. The amount of phosphates present in the soil amount to a value of 6 Kg/hectare within the U.K. The pesticide segment is led by the herbicides followed by fungicides and insecticides. In 2016, the United Kingdom used 7,805,891 Kgs of herbicide.

One of the major players stationed in the UK includes Syngenta. The company produces agrochemicals as well as seeds. It is headquartered in Switzerland. As a Biotechnology based company, it conducts genomic research as well. The company was formed in the year 2000 by the merger of Novartis Agribusiness and Zeneca Agrochemicals. In the year 2014, the company became the largest producer of agrochemicals globally. In the year 2019, the company generated sales worth USD 10.6 Billion. In the year 2017, ChemChina purchased Syngenta for USD 43 Billion. Sinochem and ChemChina inked an agreement in early 2019 to merge their agrochemical operations.

In the year 2016, Syngenta devised a new supply chain strategy that primarily focuses on customer experience and agility. The company invested in an internal logistics facility that propagated the transport of its products. This transformation was managed under the banner of the Global Logistics Optimization Program (GLO). Accenture supported Syngenta in the development of the 4PL model (fourth-party logistics providers). The model primarily specialized in logistics execution.

The company Bayer AG is another key player within the EU. The company is primarily stationed in Germany. Bayer CropScience is a wing of the parent company that specializes in the production of genetically modified crops and pesticides. In the year 2018, Bayer acquired Monsanto, a leading producer of genetically engineered crops, for USD 63 billion. This move was rather controversial due to the lawsuits associated with the company Monsanto. The company Monsanto was sued due to its product’s contribution to non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. The crop damage caused by the pesticides produced through this company also amounted to a major lawsuit.  Bayer inked a settlement fee of USD 10 Billion in the year 2019 to cover 125,000 lawsuits from plaintiffs.

Asia Pacific Plant chemicals Market Analysis

On average APAC accounts for 30% of the overall land area present over the earth. While the population density within this region accounts for roughly 60% of the global population. The area is home to countries like India and China with a population of 1.38 Billion and 1.44 Billion respectively. China accounts for 18.47% of the global population. While India contributes to 17.7% of the worldwide population. The growth of rapid growth in the population within this region is one of the key factors that drive the plant chemicals market. Crop enhancers are hereafter used extensively within this region to aid crop efficiency.

Moreover, owing to the temperature of this region APAC experiences rampant crop infestation. China is the third-largest rice-producing nation on a global scale. The country is highly susceptible to insect induced crop losses. China could potentially experience 27 Million tons worth of crop loss if they do not make use of agrochemicals. Therefore, APAC invests heavily into the production as well as the R&D sector for agricultural development within this region. The consumption of pesticides within APAC recorded a value of 505.4 thousand tonnes in the year 2014. The fertilizer market is hereafter anticipated to grow at a CAGR of roughly 2-4% within this segment.

China, India, and Japan are the largest agrochemical producers within APAC. China is also the largest consumer in terms of agrochemicals owing to its expanding population. The fertilizer consumption for China is recorded to be 503.3 Kg/ hectare. The value for fertilizer adoption is much higher in China as compared to the rest of APAC. On an average, India and Japan consume 165.8 Kg/ hectare and 242.2 Kg/ hectare fertilizer. Other countries like Indonesia and Australia recorded a fertilizer consumption of 231.4 Kg/hectare and 68.1 Kg/ hectare. The data within this segment has been collected from world bank data and OECD.

Owing to the population within China and India the crop production between these regions exceeds that of average countries within APAC. China has the capacity to produce 617930.3 metric tonnes of cereal, while India produces 313610 metric tonnes. The percentage of arable land within India and Japan accounts for a value of 52.6% and 11.5% respectively. Therefore, to increase the amount of productive crop cultivation the markets have been focusing on making use of integrated farming methods. A combination of both traditional, as well as technology-based farming, is now employed within APAC. Technologies based on AI and IoT are now being utilized. Other techniques like the use of smart farming methods has also become a practice within this region. Hereafter, Asia Pacific leads the global market in terms of agrochemical production.

Adama Agricultural Solutions is a company focused on crop protection solutions. The enterprise is primarily headquartered within China. ADAMA Ltd was formerly known as Makhteshim-Agan. The company manufactures and retails herbicides, insecticides, and fungicides. In the year 2018, the company generated a revenue of USD 3.881 Billion. In 2017, Adama Agricultural Solutions Ltd. was acquired by Hubei Sanonda Co. Ltd. The company Hubei Sanonda was a Chinese agrochemical producer that was a partially owned subsidiary of ChemChina. Other domestic companies include ArystaLifeScience and Sinofert Holdings Limited.

The company Sinofert Holdings Limited is a fertilizer company based in China. The organization focuses on the development of economic solutions that can be employed for agricultural practices. It is 53% owned by Sinochem Group, 22% owned by PotashCorp, and the remaining 25% is traded on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.

Rest of the World Plant chemicals Market Analysis