RECOMMENDATION DEVELOPMENT UNDER 4R NUTRIENT STEWARDSHIP

The major manufacturers of NPK fertilizers are increasingly emphasizing sustainability. Already seven IPNI members have sustainability reports prominent on their main web page. Most of these reports conform to the international guidelines of the GRI, the Global Reporting Initiative, providing details on performance indicators linked to economic, social and environmental progress. The GRI guidelines require that all stakeholders—shareholders, employees, clients and consumers—for a particular business have input into the content of the sustainability report, particularly the performance indicators reported. 4R Nutrient Stewardship is a concept supported by the global industry. In addition to IPNI, organizations like The Fertilizer Institute (TFI) and the Canadian Fertilizer Institute (CFI) are identifying themselves with 4R and have recently published documents on it. Why are they going this way, and what does it mean? The fertilizer industry’s interest in sustainability reporting is part of a larger business trend. For example, Wal-Mart has adopted sustainability goals that include requiring its suppliers to document sustainable production. The video webcast from their November 12 milestone meeting emphasized agriculture and food products. Can our current crop nutrient recommendation systems provide the data that is needed to verify sustainability? When Wal-Mart requires this kind of documentation from its suppliers, how far down the value chain will this requirement be passed along? It won’t end with the grower. Growers rely on many sources of recommended practice. In the end those recommendations also must also be documented as to how they came about, and how they contribute to sustainability. Internationally, sustainable development is recognized to consist of three nonnegotiable elements: economic, social, and environmental. Progress in each of those three areas is essential to sustainability. How the progress will be achieved requires input from stakeholders. For