COFCO Convinced by Performance of Limus^® Inhibited in New Velcourt Trials

Crops treated with BASF's Limus-protected urea have shown significant improvements in overall Nitrogen Use Efficiency (NUE) compared to Ammonium Nitrate (AN) in independent trials carried out by Velcourt and COFCO International UK.

Allied to a substantial cost benefit over AN, the results show Limus-protected urea is by far the most effective means of getting vital Nitrogen into crops this spring, says COFCO International UK Fertiliser Manager Russell Davison.

“The challenge with urea is managing potential loss of N to the atmosphere particularly when applications are in unfavourable conditions. Protected urea offers a viable alternative to AN with the addition of a urease inhibitor that helps limit release of gaseous ammonia resulting in more N available to crops, but it's important to remember not all such products are the same.

BASF Limus is an innovative 'dual-active' product and is unique in that it contains two specific urease inhibitors that enable it to reduce ammonia emissions more effectively than products containing a single inhibitor. Emissions can be reduced by up to 98% over straight urea”.

Nick Anderson, Head of Crop Technology at Velcourt, questions whether it is as effective as AN at getting N into crops, especially in UK growing conditions, and that is where the trials are shedding some interesting light.

“Aggregated results from two sites - one with heavy moisture retentive soil and the other on lighter droughty land - show the Limus-treated urea improved NUE by 3.4% compared to AN - which is highly significant in the current economic climate when getting the most out of every kg of N applied is critical. These take into account both improvements in yield and protein content of the grain.  

I think we can say with confidence, therefore, that Limus-treated urea will perform on average at least as well as AN and in some cases it will be better. There were clear advantages on both light and heavy soils.”

The Nitrogen recovery seen in the Velcourt trials is similar to that seen in BASF's own worldwide trials programme, which further validates the findings, Nick Anderson says.

“I think there's growing confidence that the sort of advantages we are seeing for Limus are credible and consistent and there's a real opportunity for growers to take advantage of this. Plus, of course, it is widely reported that the carbon footprint of urea as an N source is much lower than that of AN, particularly imported AN.

However you look at it, there are now very strong arguments for switching out of AN to this type of treated urea.”

For more information vist: INTRODUCING LIMUS^® - COFCO (cofcointernational.com)