Controlled Release Fertilizer Market - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2021 - 2026)

Golf courses are well established across Europe and the region currently claims 22% of the global golf facilities and is home to 22% of all golf projects in construction covering an area of 9,938,000 square km (R&A Championships Limited). Regional companies, like Ekote Technology, based in the Netherlands, introduced a polymer coated biodegradable controlled release NPK fertilizer in 2015, whose product longevity is only affected by soil temperature and not by other environmental factors. The product is widely used across the golf courses, open fields, and ornamentals. <According to the North Dakota State University, Kentucky Bluegrass, Bent grass and Ryegrass are the major cold season turfgrass grown across North America, whereas St. Augustine grass, Cynodon, are some of the warm season turf grasses grown across the region. The trend of using liquid fertilizer by the superintendents on golf courses is undergoing a shift due to the wider adoption of best management practices across the region, including enhanced efficient fertilizer, like controlled release fertilizer. Leisure turf and lawns is one of the most grown crops in the United states. These leisure turf and lawns are mostly preferred by the house owners and commercial places for landscaping to curb the appeal. People in North America are shifting to native grasses as they help in water conservation. For instance, in Texas, native grasses, such as buffalo grass, blue grama, and thunder  turf have been replacing other grass and turf varieties since 2015. This factor is further expected to boost the demand for controlled release fertilizer in the coming years.

North America witnessed consistent growth and thus is expected to provide potential market opportunities. The North American controlled release fertilizer market accounts for major share in the revenue for the region. The first chemically-controlled release products were available as fertilizers, over 50 years ago. High cost, with respect to other nitrogen fertilizers presently, has constrained their utilization in large-scale production of commodity crops, such as, corn, sorghum, wheat, and canola. The application was restricted to special vegetables, orchards, nurseries, seed production, etc. Eliminating superfluous application of fertilizers saves a broadcasting expense of about USD 5 – USD 7 per acre, which acts as a driver for the market.