Agroeconomic prospects for the use of nitrogen fertilizers for field crops

Abstract

The issues of recoupment of nitrogen fertilizers are considered, since they determine the need for fertilizers and the agro-economic efficiency of their use. It is shown that the payback of fertilizers is a complex value and not constant in different crops. The increase in yield from fertilizers in kind is taken on the basis of field experiments with fertilizers carried out on podzolized chernozem of the opita field of the Uman NUS. The cost of an increase in the yield from the use of nitrogen fertilizers was determined by the average actual sales prices of products prevailing on the market through various sales channels in the 6th quarter of 2021. Additional costs included: the cost of fertilizers, a margin for their delivery to the farm, the cost of using it on the farm and collecting increase in yield from nitrogen fertilizers. The cost of ammonium nitrate was taken at UAH 24,000 / t with the addition of a margin for their delivery to the farm. The costs of using fertilizers on the farm and collecting an increase in yield were set calculated according to the accepted standards. The difference between the value of the yield increase (PU) and additional costs (AD) gives the net income received from the use of fertilizers. The ratio of the cost of increasing the yield to additional costs shows their payback. On the basis of comparing the indicators of PU and DZ, the boundaries of the economic efficiency of the use of fertilizers were determined: PU> DZ (general expression of the task). We also calculated the minimum required increase in yield from fertilizers and the limits of price increases for nitrogen fertilizers. It has been established that at a price of ammonium nitrate of UAH 24,000 / t and the cost of its use in optimal doses for field crops against the background of a balanced phosphorus-potassium nutrition, the cost of an increase in yield is 3075–47894 UAH/ha. Payback of 1 kg a.c. nitrogen fertilization varies in a wide range – from 3.0 to 217.3 hryvnyas, depending on the crop. The limit of the unprofitable price per unit of the active substance of nitrogen fertilizers at the optimal application rate depends on the crop and is in the range of UAH 76.5–219.0 /ha. With the current disparity in prices for crop products and ammonium nitrate (24,000 UAH/t), its use is profitable, which is explained by the low ability of podzolized chernozem to provide plants with nitrogen, biological requirements of crops for this food element and technologies for their cultivation. Key words: nitrogen fertilizers, agricultural crops, fertilizer recoupment, loss threshold, price increase limit.