Terraplant launches MinerOxi+, Brazil's first 3-in-1 organomineral fertilizer

Date:07-18-2024

The Brazilian company Terraplant has announced the launch of MinerOxi+, the first 3-in-1 organomineral fertilizer in Brazil. 

According to the manufacturer, the new product combines organic fractions, essential minerals, and oxides, providing a ″response to environmental and climate challenges and the need for more sustainable agricultural practices.″

Mineral fertilizers are expensive in Brazil, relying on imported mineral raw materials. Experts suggested that organic fertilizers frequently used can replace up to 50% of mineral fertilizers. However, seeking even better results, farmers have increasingly opted for organomineral fertilizers. The goal is for this fertilizer to offer the rapid availability of nutrients from mineral fertilizers along with the long-term benefits of organic fertilizers and enhanced nutrient availability provided by the organic fraction.

Brazilian soils are naturally acidic, reducing nutrient availability to plants. Some products on the market, such as oxides, correct soil acidity. Farmers often add these acidity-correcting sources to their mineral and organomineral fertilizers in pursuit of better results. 

The problem is that this process needs to be certified by the Ministry of Agriculture, requires a certain level of knowledge to mix, takes time, and requires infrastructure on the part of the producer. Cléber Terribile, director of Terraplant, states that it was necessary to resolve this ″operational bottleneck from the field to the industry, where producers had to mix two products and apply the inputs, often without standardization or guaranteed results.″

″So Terraplant decided to innovate and create MinerOxi+, a ready-made, registered, and certified product by the Ministry of Agriculture, with standardization and guarantee, where the producer has the organic fraction, mineral, and oxides in the same fertilizer. This is how Brazil's first 3-in-1 organomineral fertilizer was born,″ he says.

According to an expert, Alex Becker, PhD in soils and Coordinator of Research, Development, and Innovation at Terraplant, oxides provide immediate pH correction in the soil. ″Just apply MinerOxi+, and as soon as the product dissolves in water, it will start correcting the pH. Additionally, by raising the pH, the oxide increases nutrient availability to plants and neutralizes toxic aluminum, which hinders root growth,″ he pointed out. 

Becker highlighted that unlike limestone, which takes 90 to 120 days to correct pH and must be applied before crop installation, the oxide allows immediate correction. ″For example, if the producer uses this formulation in the next soybean crop, they will see the results at harvest,″ he compares.

The new technology was developed to serve different crops, explained Alex Becker, Coordinator of Research, Development, and Innovation. ″It is a fertilizer designed for multiple crops, so we will offer seven formulations to the market, from soybeans to horticultural crops. All provide benefits to both soil and plants,″ Becker emphasizes. 

He adds, ″It is worth remembering that a plant needs at least 16 nutrients to complete its cycle satisfactorily, and MinerOxi+ contains 13 nutrients, which allows us to say that we contribute to producing more nutritious and healthier foods.″

(Editing by Leonardo Gottems, reporter for AgroPages)