Market and product

Yara Brasil, the Brazilian subsidiary of Norwegian fertilizer group Yara International, is rolling out a line of low-emission fertilizers combined with on-farm carbon tracking systems. Deise DallaNora, the company's Director of Sustainability, discussed this direction against a backdrop of Brazil's heavy dependence on fertilizer imports and rising decarbonization pressure from international markets.

Fertilizers and emissions — the numbers that matter

Agriculture accounts for approximately 20% of global greenhouse gas emissions, with around 11% linked directly to fertilizer production and use. This makes fertilizers a critical intervention point as major food corporations work to reduce their Scope 3 emissions — those generated across the entire supply chain, including at the farm level.

Since 2005, Yara has cut emissions from its global production operations by nearly 45% through catalytic technologies that suppress nitrous oxide (N₂O) — a greenhouse gas roughly 265 times more potent than CO₂. N₂O is the primary emission source in nitrogen fertilizer production and also the point where catalytic intervention is most technically effective.

Changing the feedstock

Most nitrogen fertilizers today are produced from synthetic ammonia via the Haber-Bosch process, using natural gas as the primary feedstock — a major source of carbon emissions across the product lifecycle.

Yara is piloting a shift toward renewable ammonia, produced either from biomethane derived through anaerobic fermentation of sugarcane residues, or through electrolysis of water using renewable electricity. According to figures the company has published, fertilizers produced from these sources can achieve up to a 90% reduction in carbon footprint compared to those manufactured using conventional natural gas. The actual reduction depends on the renewable source used and the nitrogen content of the product.

Some products in the portfolio also incorporate Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) technology during the manufacturing process, reducing emissions at the source rather than relying solely on offset mechanisms.

A value chain linkage model

What is notable about Yara's approach is not only the production technology itself, but the mechanism used to bring low-carbon fertilizers to farmers at scale.

The operating model works as follows: a food company at the top of the supply chain commits to purchasing output from farmers who use low-carbon inputs, creating an economic incentive for farmers to switch without bearing the full incremental cost. The pilot project with PepsiCo on potato cultivation in Paraná state — initially six farmers across approximately 130 hectares — is the first implementation of this model. The first harvest took place in March 2026.

Similar arrangements are being developed in the coffee and cocoa value chains with a range of other partners. This suggests the model is not crop-specific but can be scaled across different agricultural commodities.

On-farm carbon measurement

A key technical challenge throughout this process is verifying that emissions reductions actually occur at the farm level. Without reliable data, corporate decarbonization commitments have no verifiable basis.

Yara uses the Cool Farm Tool — a standardized measurement platform that quantifies greenhouse gas emissions, water use, biodiversity impacts, and post-harvest losses at the farm level. Data sharing between fertilizer producers, farmers, and food companies also enables faster adjustment of decarbonization strategies and creates the basis for compensating farmers for the environmental services they provide.

This measurement capability is increasingly important as the European Union implements the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), which imposes additional levies on imported goods based on their embedded carbon content. Brazilian agricultural exports to the EU will need to demonstrate specific carbon footprints with growing precision — a qualitative claim will no longer be sufficient.

Supply chain risk and the import dependency problem

Running alongside the long-term sustainability agenda is a more immediate challenge: Brazil currently imports approximately 85% of its domestic fertilizer consumption, leaving its agricultural sector exposed to geopolitical disruption.
Around 30% of globally traded urea passes through the Strait of Hormuz — a potential choke point given prolonged tensions in the Middle East. The same region concentrates approximately 50% of global sulfur production, a key input in fertilizer manufacturing. The Russia–Ukraine conflict has further complicated global supply chains for nitrogen and potash fertilizers.

The market currently anticipates a 10–12% reduction in fertilizer import volumes into Brazil, while domestic inventories remain limited. This is the context in which DallaNora emphasizes the need for long-term national policy planning — including building domestic fertilizer production capacity and diversifying import sources — running in parallel with the transition to low-carbon inputs.