To meet increased demand for food, farmers are asked to increase production on their land while minimizing environmental impacts. Agrium is supporting this effort by working with researchers to grow more food through the use of best management practices embodied in the 4R Global Nutrient Stewardship Framework and new technologies like controlled release fertilizers. Controlled release products time the release of nutrients to match the needs of the plant. These products limit the number of required applications to the crop, saving energy, minimizing loss to the environment and increasing yields.

Through the use of Agrium's ESN® (controlled release urea), growers can increase corn yields by an average of five to ten percent. Although we are proud of this achievement, we are even more excited by what this technology can do in developing nations where growers do not have access to the equipment and knowledge needed to implement other best management practices. While there is much work to do, Agrium is inspired to make our contribution to the United Nations' Millennium Development Goal of eradicating extreme hunger.