Introduction
Brazil’s fertilizer sector took a strategic step in strengthening its institutional and regulatory framework with the announcement of a technical cooperation agreement between public and private players aimed at producing more than 73 million tons of fertilizers by 2036.
The agreement was formalized between the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (MAPA) and the Brazilian Association for Fertilizer Diffusion (ANDA) during the 12th Brazilian Fertilizer Congress, covered on-site by AgroPages in São Paulo.
Signed by Guilherme Campos Júnior, Secretary of Agricultural Policy at MAPA, and Eduardo de Souza Monteiro, Chairman of ANDA’s Board of Directors, the agreement sets out to improve industry statistics, foster innovation and bioinputs, generate strategic knowledge, and mobilize resources for sustainability.
According to ANDA, the goal is to consolidate a roadmap ensuring Brazil’s ability to supply 73 million tons of fertilizers by 2036, a volume considered strategic to support agricultural expansion while reducing external dependency.
Domestic production: projects underway
The commitment aligns with ongoing structural initiatives. Geraldo Alckmin, Vice President of Brazil and Chairman of the National Fertilizer and Plant Nutrition Council (Confert), highlighted forthcoming investments expected to boost domestic supply:
Serra do Salitre Complex (Minas Gerais): expected to meet 15% of the nation’s phosphate demand.
Fafen Bahia and ANSA Paraná (nitrogen): plant restarts will supply up to 20% of national nitrogen requirements.
Autazes Project (Amazonas): focused on potassium chloride, covering some 20% of Brazilian consumption.
These efforts join legislative measures, such as Bill 699/2023 (Profert) under discussion in Congress, which provides tax incentives for fertilizer production, and Bill 2,022/2022, already approved in committee, eliminating PIS/Cofins taxes on fertilizer imports and commercialization.
Trends: bioinputs, innovation, and regenerative agriculture
Although Brazil’s fertilizer deliveries are expected to remain between 48–49 million tons in 2024/25 — record levels, according to analysts such as Jefferson Souza (Agrinvest) and Carlos Cogo (Cogo Inteligência em Agronegócio) — the event discussions underscored the need to diversify beyond imported volumes.
Debates emphasized the role of regenerative agriculture and the integration of bioinputs in fertilization programs. Experts, including José Carlos Polidoro (MAPA), Jenny Wang (Mosaic), and Francisco Matturro (Rede ILPF) argued for faster regulation of Brazil’s Bioinputs Law as a critical measure to enable low-impact technologies and help restore part of the 40 million hectares of degraded land by 2036.
Another focus was on special and next-generation fertilizers, such as nitrogen solutions designed to reduce volatilization losses—a theme addressed by the research that won the 4th Carlos Florence Award, presented by ANDA to a researcher at Esalq/USP.
Geopolitics and credit: risks and bottlenecks
International concerns were also prominent. Carlos Cogo, Renata Cardarelli (Argus Media), and Gustavo Zaitune (Adufértil) warned about uncertainties stemming from global trade tensions and logistical constraints, which increase Brazil’s vulnerability as one of the world’s largest fertilizer importers.
At the same time, rural credit discussions revealed concerns about sustaining high consumption levels without structural financing adjustments. The record-breaking Plano Safra 2025/26 package will require consistent public policies to maintain sector competitiveness.
″We emphasize the importance of jointly discussing the present, while designing the future. The fertilizer sector is part of the solution to the global challenge of producing food with lower environmental impact,″ said Eduardo Monteiro, Chairman of ANDA’s Board of Directors, at the event’s closing session.
