Sustainable Agriculture Sciences department, Rothamsted Research North Wyke, Okehampton, Devon, United Kingdom.
Elemental Digest Systems Ltd, Bellinster Business Park, Winkleigh, Devon, United Kingdom.
PLoS One. 2019 Sep 4;14(9):e0221647. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0221647. eCollection 2019.
Our food security depends on finding a sustainable alternative to rock phosphate for fertilizer production. Furthermore, over 2 billion people worldwide are currently affected by micronutrient deficiencies, and crop concentrations of essential minerals are declining. This paper examines whether a novel multi-element fertilizer, Thallo®, can produce crop yields comparable to conventional rock phosphate derived fertilizers, and have an additional benefit of increasing essential mineral concentrations. Thallo®, produced from abattoir and recycled industrial by-products, was tested against conventional mineral fertilizers in a pot trial with wheat and grass. In soil, yields were comparable between the fertilizer types, but, in a low-nutrient substrate, Thallo® showed a yield benefit. Elemental concentrations in the plant material typically reflected the relative concentrations in the fertilizer, and Thallo® fertilized plants contained significantly more of some essential elements, such as selenium and zinc. Furthermore, concentrations of the toxic element cadmium were significantly lower in Thallo® fertilized crops. Among the fertilizers, manganese concentrations were greatest in the Thallo®, but within the fertilized plants, they were greatest under the mineral fertilizer, showing the complexity of assessing whether nutrients will be taken up by crops. In summary, fertilizers from livestock waste have the potential to improve wheat and grass concentrations of essential elements while maintaining yields.
我们的食品安全取决于能否找到一种可持续的方法来替代磷矿粉生产肥料。此外，目前全球有超过 20 亿人受到微量元素缺乏的影响，而作物必需矿物质的浓度正在下降。本文探讨了一种新型多元素肥料 Thallo®是否可以生产出与传统磷矿粉衍生肥料相当的作物产量，并具有增加必需矿物质浓度的额外益处。Thallo®由屠宰场和回收的工业副产品制成，在小麦和草的盆栽试验中与常规矿物肥料进行了测试。在土壤中，肥料类型之间的产量相当，但在低养分基质中，Thallo®表现出了产量优势。植物材料中的元素浓度通常反映了肥料中的相对浓度，Thallo®施肥的植物中含有更多的一些必需元素，如硒和锌。此外，Thallo®施肥作物中的有毒元素镉浓度明显较低。在这些肥料中，锰的浓度在 Thallo®中最高，但在施肥的植物中，锰的浓度在矿物肥料下最高，这表明评估养分是否会被作物吸收的复杂性。总之，来自牲畜废物的肥料有可能在保持产量的同时提高小麦和草中必需元素的浓度。
