Nongda Fertilizer Industry Has Once Again Received Recognition from the Provincial Government and Won a Major Science and Technology Award.

On the morning of May 22, the 2016 Shandong Provincial Science and Technology Awards Ceremony was solemnly held in Jinan. The project “Integration and Demonstration of Key Industrialization Technologies for a New Type of Humic Acid-Based Controlled-Release Fertilizer,” independently completed by Nongda Fertilizer Co., Ltd., was awarded the Second Prize for Scientific and Technological Progress of Shandong Province. This marks the company’s second receipt of this prestigious honor, following its 2012 award for “Research on Process Technology and New Product Development of Sulfur-Resin Dual-Membrane Controlled-Release Fertilizer.”

This project addresses key, cross‑industry technical challenges in the fertilizer sector—namely, humic acid activation, production process technologies, and quality standards—by systematically conducting integrated research on critical technologies for slow‑release humic acid fertilizers. It has pioneered a novel composite activator and an innovative activation process for extracting humic acid from weathered coal or lignite, and established an online, continuous production process for activating humic acid in slow‑release fertilizers, resulting in a more than 30% increase in active humic acid content. The project has filed 12 national patent applications, with 5 patents granted, and has contributed to the development of one national standard and one industry standard, while also publishing 10 peer‑reviewed papers.

The newly developed active humic acid slow-release fertilizer has been extensively demonstrated and promoted across a range of crops, including maize, wheat, rice, peanuts, cotton, fruit trees, and tea. Compared with equivalent amounts of conventional fertilizers, this product significantly enhances fertilizer use efficiency, boosts crop yields by 5% to 15%, and increases fertilizer utilization by more than 15 percentage points. To date, a cumulative total of 3 million tons of humic acid–based fertilizers have been applied, improving soil health on 72 million mu of land, enabling single-application fertilization, reducing labor requirements, and delivering substantial economic, social, and ecological benefits.

This award represents high recognition of the company’s R&D capabilities and innovative strength, and it also fully affirms the company’s efforts to advance technological progress and industrial development in the sector. Moving forward, the company will remain committed to an innovation-driven development strategy, continuously strengthening its core competitiveness in scientific and technological innovation, and making new contributions to accelerating supply-side reform in China’s fertilizer industry, promoting advances in modern agricultural science and technology, ensuring national food security, and advancing the cause of agriculture, rural areas, and farmers.