Sulfur-coated urea is a form of urea fertilizer with sulfur, which acts as an inhibitor of ammonium-urea conversion in soil. It is used for enhancing crop growth, reducing nutrient loss, and decreasing environmental issues, such as eutrophication. The sulfur coating on the urea makes it less soluble in water than uncoated urea, which results in a more gradual release of nitrogen to plants. This slow release also synchronizes with the plant’s demand and allows for proper fertilizer application, which is important to optimize nutrient efficiency. Humid conditions are necessary for the sulfur-coated urea to dissolve and release nitrogen to plants. However, when sulfur-coated urea is stored or shipped in non-humid conditions, the sulfur can separate from the urea, altering the release process.
Market Dynamics:
Rising investments are estimated to augment the growth of the global Sulfur Coated Urea Market during the forecast period. For instance, Yara International and SoftBank Vision Fund 2 started a growth venture in March 2022. This will be the third investment by Yara Growth Ventures in the agriculture marketplace. Moreover, rising environmental concerns are anticipated to restrain growth of the global sulfur coated urea market during the forecast period.
Impact of COVID-19:
The pandemic has challenged the sulfur coated urea industry drastically. It had a negative impact on the growth of the sector. The pandemic affected the production and distribution of fertilizers globally. Restrictions were imposed for preventing transmission of the virus. These restrictions disrupted logistics in various regions across the world. Several industries like automobiles, chemicals, semiconductors, fertilizers and many more were facing challenges during the pandemic. The manufacturing activities in these industries were halted. This had a negative impact on the demand of sulfur coated urea. Thus, the growth of the global sulfur coated urea market was restrained during the pandemic.
Key Takeaways:
The global sulfur coated urea market is expected to witness high growth, exhibiting a CAGR of 3.32 % over the forecast period, due to increasing agreements among key players. For instance, Haifa Group and AgrIOT signed an agreement in March 2021. Haifa will be investing around $2M in AgrIOT against almost 30% of the company, according to the agreement.
North America is anticipated to witness significant growth in the global sulfur coated urea market during the forecast period, due to the growing adoption rate of cutting-edge fertilizers and rising demand for cotton. The global Argentite market size was valued at US$ 6.93 billion in 2023 and is expected to reach US$ 13.08 billion by 2030, growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 9.5% from 2023 to 2030.
Key players operating in the global sulfur coated urea market are Agrium, Nutrien Ltd, ICL Specialty Fertilizers, J.R.Simplot Company, Haifa Group, Syngenta, Sun Agro, Israel Chemicals, Harrell’s Dencam Composite, Andersons, Koch industries, J. R. Simplot, Yara International, and Haifa Chemicals.