Fertiliser traceability
Traceability used to be something we needed when things went wrong – when there was a product recall or a food safety investigation. These days, fuelled mainly by increased demand for transparency, people want to know where the things they are buying come from, so being able to trace products from production to end-use, or in the case of fertilisers from the factory to the field, is becoming more and more of a requirement.
Your beef is traceable, so your fertiliser should be too
For Yara, traceability is a key part of each and every product and is an important factor in providing reassurance on product quality. At Yara, we produce our own fertiliser products, made with carefully sourced, high-quality raw materials to ensure that the product is of the highest standard. This means we know exactly what is going into each bag, can or box of fertiliser. We continually carry out tests of our own products to validate this.
Being able to trace each product back to where it was produced is vital for a number of reasons. For one if there happens to be any issues with a particular product then it is easy to trace it back through its journey to find out where the problem occurred. Having the ability to track a product in this manner gives you the reassurance that you can trust the product. A further reason for the increasing importance of traceability is the ability to calculate the carbon footprint of your crop, a topic companies and consumers alike, are becoming more interested in.
What does traceability mean for me?
Whenever you see YaraBela, YaraMila, YaraLiva, YaraVita or YaraTera on the bag you can be certain that the fertiliser has been made in one of our own factories. This means we know exactly what is going into each bag of fertiliser so we can trace each bag, bottle or pack back to the ingredients used to make it.
Comes from a Yara factory
Yara fertilisers are always made in Yara's own factories
Full control over quality
We know exactly what is going into each bag of fertiliser
Unique identification
Yara fertiliser can be traced back from field to factory
- Controlled manufacturing process. YaraMila fertiliser is only made in our own factories. This means we have complete control over the raw materials and know exactly what goes into each bag of fertiliser.
- Guaranteed quality. Because we only use carefully sourced high-quality raw materials we can be certain the fertiliser is the highest quality and we continually conduct tests on our own fertilisers to ensure quality control.
- Unique product identification. YaraMila fertiliser can be traced back from the field to factory. Being able to trace each product back to where it was produced is vital for a number of reasons. For one if there happens to be an issue with a particular product then it is easy to trace it back through its journey to find out where the problem occurred. Having the ability to track a product in this manner gives you the reassurance that you can trust the product.
- Individual carbon footprint. A further reason for the increasing importance of traceability is the ability to calculate the carbon footprint of your crop, a topic companies and consumers alike, are becoming more interested in.
So how does traceability work?
Each fertiliser from Yara has a label which contains information on it unique to that product. Using this information it is possible to see which factory made the fertiliser and the product grade code, as well as the facility where it was put into a bag and a unique bag identification number.
- These images are what you’ll see on the front and back of a typical YaraMila bag.
- The front of the bag will have a 3-letter code (at the bottom right) to denote which factory it is from, in this case, POR means our Porsgrunn factory in Norway.
- The back of the bag has more information including the product grade code (PJ421P) and again, the factory (POR) where it was produced.
- This information is useful when it comes to spreader settings as there will be particular settings for YaraMila ExtraGrass from Porsgrunn (or POR).
- Another label that you will find at the top of the bag liner also holds useful information for traceability purposes, this example is also from a bag of YaraMila Extragrass.
- The first three letters state where it was bagged, in this case IFT refers to Immingham Fertiliser Terminal – if this was bagged at Avonmouth then it would have AVO, if Swansea SWA etc.
- This is then followed by a bag number (15000005) which is unique to every bag.
- Then there is the product grade code (PJ421P) and which factory it came from (POR).
- Some products may also include additional information.
Trust Yara quality
With all this in place as standard, you can rest assured that any Yara branded fertiliser you buy can be traced back to the facility where it was bagged, to the factory where it was produced, and also the batch that it came from.
Related articles
Fertiliser stewardship
Yara operates a fertiliser stewardship programme to ensure that proper care is taken along the whole fertiliser value chain from product development, purchase of raw materials and manufacturing right up to the end delivery and use on the farm.
Fertiliser storage
Correct storage of fertiliser is important to ensure safety. Where possible, fertilisers should be stored in a closed, secure storage place to protect the product from the weather and reduce the risk of theft.
Fertiliser handling and transport
It is important to handle and transport fertiliser safely whilst minimising deterioration in quality. Correct handling and transportation of fertiliser should be based on climatic conditions, the type of fertiliser and how it is shipped (bulk or bags).
Fertiliser labelling
The label on the fertiliser bag contains important statutory information for transport, storage and handling of the fertiliser. The chemical composition of the product is stated on the bag in accordance with national regulation.
