Phosphorus is an irreplaceable and essential element in all food cycles and, in the form of phosphate fertilizer, a critical resource for agriculture and thus for global food security. There is no life without phosphorus. Thus, all life on earth is limited by the amount of elemental phosphorus. Any fears of a phosphate shortage in the foreseeable future can be dispelled as the available resources will last for a long time to come. Only the global production, distribution and utilization cycles are susceptible to disruption. Basically, to better understand these cycles, it is necessary to have reliable data.
Phosphorus is, besides nitrogen and potassium, one of the three basic plant nutrients. The phosphorus that is used in fertilizers is for the most part mined in the form of phosphate rock. Any fears of a phosphate shortage in the foreseeable future can be dispelled as the available resources will last for a long time to come. The global production, distribution and utilization cycles are, however, susceptible to disruptions. To better understand these cycles and to improve efficiency and sustainability in the phosphate cycle, it is necessary to build up a reliable database of phosphate rock deposits, and to analyze phosphate flows as well as the global supply and demand for phosphate.
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