Depleted Soils and Petrochemical Fertilizers Destabilize Africa and Globe
Beyond Pesticides
2023.10.24
Sub-Saharan Africa, often celebrated for its rich cultural diversity and stunning landscapes, is also home to a growing crisis beneath its surface – the depletion of its ancient soils. These soils–some of the oldest in the world–have undergone long periods of weathering and erosion, leading to severe nutrient deficiencies. Potassium, nitrogen, calcium, and phosphorus, vital for crop growth, are notably absent from these soils. Due to this and a dependency on synthetic fertilizers, along with an absence of soil and water conservation programs and other complex issues stemming from poor infrastructure, pervasive government instability, and colonialism, African soils have a markedly decreased ability to sustain high-yielding food crops. As a result, restoring soil health through the nurturing of microbial activity and the natural cycling of nutrients is identified as the number-one priority to improve agricultural productivity and ensure food sovereignty.
While it might seem that African farmers could turn to organic or chemical fertilizers to address soil nutrient deficiencies, the reality is quite different. The high costs associated with these fertilizers make them largely inaccessible to most African farmers. Even though the average fertilizer application rate In Sub-Saharan Africa is 22 kilograms per hectare, significantly lower than the global average of 146 kilograms per hectare, the costs of even this limited fertilizer application are continually rising. A key factor contributing to these soaring costs is that the components required to make fertilizers are priced in U.S. dollars. This means that fluctuations in the value of the U.S. dollar impact the affordability of fertilizers in other countries. Consequently, African farmers rarely have the means to access the essential nutrients their soils require.
Sub-Saharan Africa, often celebrated for its rich cultural diversity and stunning landscapes, is also home to a growing crisis beneath its surface – the depletion of its ancient soils. These soils–some of the oldest in the world–have undergone long periods of weathering and erosion, leading to severe nutrient deficiencies. Potassium, nitrogen, calcium, and phosphorus, vital for crop growth, are notably absent from these soils. Due to this and a dependency on synthetic fertilizers, along with an absence of soil and water conservation programs and other complex issues stemming from poor infrastructure, pervasive government instability, and colonialism, African soils have a markedly decreased ability to sustain high-yielding food crops. As a result, restoring soil health through the nurturing of microbial activity and the natural cycling of nutrients is identified as the number-one priority to improve agricultural productivity and ensure food sovereignty.
While it might seem that African farmers could turn to organic or chemical fertilizers to address soil nutrient deficiencies, the reality is quite different. The high costs associated with these fertilizers make them largely inaccessible to most African farmers. Even though the average fertilizer application rate In Sub-Saharan Africa is 22 kilograms per hectare, significantly lower than the global average of 146 kilograms per hectare, the costs of even this limited fertilizer application are continually rising. A key factor contributing to these soaring costs is that the components required to make fertilizers are priced in U.S. dollars. This means that fluctuations in the value of the U.S. dollar impact the affordability of fertilizers in other countries. Consequently, African farmers rarely have the means to access the essential nutrients their soils require.
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