Why Micronutrients Matter More Than Ever

Chemist. Electrician Pilot. Computer scientist. Teacher. Weatherperson. Mechanic. Salesperson. The list of skills successful retailers must have continues to grow. When it comes to micronutrients, all those roles are increasingly important.

“Growers are recognizing the benefits of micronutrients, but with commodity prices trending down, it’s easy to value nutrients in a pecking order with nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium in the highest position,” says Stephanie Zelinko, National Agronomist, AgroLiquid. “Higher priced nutrients, such as micros, may get cut because it’s small volume and significant dollars.”

Many providers expected the micronutrient market would be flat compared with last year. Instead, the market showed resiliency.

Muhammad Chragh, Technical Agronomist, Koch Agronomic Services, points to four factors that influenced micronutrient use in the past year:

• Increased awareness of their role in plant growth and development and identification of deficiencies.
• Increased demand for high-yield crops.
• Increased use of precision agriculture technologies makes it easier to apply micronutrients.
• Growth in the development and adoption of biological and organic micronutrient formulations.

Given those factors, Chargh points to ways in which end users manage their approach of micronutrients.

“Advances in seed genetics have increased the nutritional demands of high-performance hybrid crops, making micronutrients more critical than ever,” he says. In addition, “more growers realize micronutrients are necessary for reaching yield potential and are more than just a ‘nice to have’ to ‘important for achieving highest yield potential.’ Finally, this has driven education and awareness around micronutrient deficiencies and efficient application methods to meet the need.”

Given the deeper understanding and increased use, Jason Gregory, Brand Manager of Corn and Nutritionals with Helena Products Group, says it’s not surprising there was an uptick in micronutrient use.

“I expected to see flat to marginal growth headed into 2025 based on overall grower sentiment and economic factors,” he says. “The closer we got to planting decisions, we began to see grower sentiment improve and planting intentions shift, so we’ve outperformed the expectations I had at this time last year.”

Dublin, OH-based Nachurs has seen a decade of growth in the micronutrient market says Tommy Roach, Vice President — Product Development and Technical Services. “What used to be a cyclical trend is now thought of as standard practice for row crop agriculture across the U.S. What has changed during the timeframe is the use of micronutrient blends rather than straight nutrients (i.e. zinc, boron) as growers understand the benefits of micropacks and the synergies they offer.”

Ensuring that end users have the products they want when they want them has helped grow the segment.

“The ‘just-in-time’ mentality has caused a recent shift in both application timing and purchase decisions,” says Fred Nichols, Huma Chief Sales and Chief Marketing Officer. “We expected this trend to continue. We experienced one of our largest Q2s in history, culminating in a record June.”

Extreme weather had some end users looking for solutions that could mediate any negative effects.

“Like 2024, 2025 has some weather extremes that make it difficult for field operations, which is leading growers to look to fertilizer and micronutrient options that can provide more consistent responses under an array of weather scenarios,” says Tryston Beyrer, Crop Nutrition Lead at The Mosaic Co.

Changing Views

As micronutrient providers develop more offerings, and pair them with other crop inputs, retailers are better able to deliver solutions to the many challenges their grower-customers face.

“The role has evolved, becoming more integrated in crop planning and standard agronomic practices as growers recognize their value in addressing limiting yield factors,” says Ron Calhoun, Senior Portfolio Manager, Plant Nutrition at Loveland Products.

As the understanding of effects of nutrient loss continues to grow, so too does the importance of micronutrients.

“The role of micronutrients is as vital/essential as it ever have been from a plant physiological standpoint, but the frequency of micronutrient deficiencies have been increasing,”

Mosaic’s Beyrer says. “Above average yields have continued to remove more nutrients, and greater recognition is being given to, for example, the Soil Test Summaries from The Fertilizer Institute indicate that (showed) over 65% of Zn (zinc) samples have declined between 2015 and 2020.”

Understanding Fertility

Soil scientists continue to learn more about how micronutrients benefit crops. That understanding has led to new product blends.

“It seems as if carriers, protection from loss, and micronutrient combinations are being positioned as emerging technology,” AgroLiquid’s Zelinko says. “What has changed is the recognition that micronutrients are a key part of a fertility program, especially when pushing higher yields.”

Like a chef who puts together the right ingredients at the right time, so too do retailers and end users.

“Savvy growers know how to build crops,” Huma’s Nichols says. “The savviest build their crops like a custom home builder. They want to stimulate and optimize specific growth and hormonal functions throughout the growth cycle.”

Nachurs’ Roach agrees: “Micronutrients are being precision placed at specific times of influence that drive optimum crop productivity,” he says. “This has changed from historical broadcast application with dry NPK.”

Extending the metaphor a bit farther, the chef (retailer) combines the right ingredients (micronutrients) to ensure the final meal (crop) meets the diners’ (growers’) expectations.

“There are many product options that provide growers with the ability to build a program and select what’s best suited for their crop plans,” Loveland’s Calhoun says. “Efficiency improvements stem from better formulations and precise application technology options such as in-furrow use. Growers can now match product, placement, timing, and rate to match crop demand with much greater accuracy. We see more growers take advantage of in-season application strategies by utilizing aircraft and high-clearance sprayers to combine fungicide and nutritional products, capitalizing on labor and equipment efficiencies.”

Micronutrients have the ability to help growers solve small problems before they become big issues and, in some cases, before they become problems at all,” says Julia Fulton, Marketing Lead — Specialty Liquids, The Andersons.

As products become more sophisticated and timing more critical, growers need someone with a deeper understanding of how and when to apply these products.

“The science has progressed toward smarter, more precise, more sustainable forms of micronutrient delivery over the past several years,” says Kuide Qin, Chief Science Officer, Verdesian. “We have seen a strong uptick in bio-based, chelated, or certified organic micronutrient solutions that support regenerative ag goals.”

Artificial Intelligence

“Large data sets are impacting many industries and ag is no different,” Loveland’s Calhoun says. “Leveraging large data sets from soil and tissue testing has enabled us to identify trends across extensive geographic regions. With more data available from more areas, we can draw deeper, more accurate conclusions about what’s occurring — even in adjacent regions.

Access to robust data allows us to streamline the decision-making process by detecting issues earlier and responding proactively. Ultimately, large-scale data analysis is helping to spot emerging trends, plan ahead, and address potential challenges before they escalate.”

In other words, artificial intelligence can help retailers and growers tap into the benefits of micronutrients.

It’s the interoperability that artificial intelligence provides that gives retailers and their grower-customers better information. For example: “The increased adoption of drones within the industry has opened up a variety of opportunities for in-season management decisions, including in the micronutrient segment,” says Brooke Pfarr, Marketing Manager — Seed Treatments, Micronutrients and Fertilizer Additives, WinField United.

“Artificial intelligence tools can analyze the data captured by drones to assess the field for deficiencies and make timely, agronomic recommendations for in-season applications,” Pfarr continues. “We recommend that this is augmented by a trusted agronomic advisor, as some deficiencies can look similar and may require historical tissue sampling information to augment the recommendation.”

Trends

No matter how good a product is, there is one hurdle it must clear: “Return on investment,” Helena’s Gregory says. “While there are a lot of trends and factors that influence this market, the bottom line is our growers understand that going into the season with a clear plan on how to meet the nutritional needs of their acres is going to deliver more to their profitability.”
One way to deliver that ROI is merging micronutrients with other inputs.

“We continue to see more combinations and crossovers between biostimulants and micronutrients,” WinField’s Pfarr says. “That’s why we created the WinField United BioVerified designation to help retailers sort through the options and jump straight to a short list of products selected based on reliable product research and data. We test, we learn, and we figure out what works so farmers don’t have to spend their limited seasons sorting it out on their own.”

Given the options available, end users need to know what works for their crops and what’s driving those needs.

“Trends include the push for sustainability, precision agriculture, and the need to do more with less,” Verdesian’s Qin says. “Growers seek solutions that improve nutrient efficiency and reduce environmental impact. There’s also a growing interest in combining micronutrients with biologicals and biostimulants to unlock synergistic benefits.”

Whatever their needs Koch’s Chargh urges users to explore their options.

“Traditional granular micronutrients often struggle with uneven distribution in the soil, creating a patchy supply for plants,” he says. This inconsistency leads to some plants thriving while others become deficient, affecting overall crop health and yield.”