Subsidized prices were much lower than non-subsidized prices in Malawi (9%) and Zambia (18% of the non-subsidized price). However, many observations associated with these amounts cannot be fixed by multiplying with 50, because even after changing the units to number of bags, the prices remained too high. It contains 46% N, and no other plant nutrients. We used that information to calculate the price of fertilizer per kg. This problem has also been reported by others [21, 44]. Random Forest models tend to predict very well within the range of the observed values, but the predictions may show sudden breaks, and can be poor in extrapolating. For example, a price gradient was reported for Uganda with retail prices steadily rising when moving away from Kampala [30]. Get the liquid fertilizers you need from the leading fertilizer supplier in South Africa. We … We build separate models for the Africa Fertilizer and LSMS data. In some cases, there appeared to have been a mix up in the units between kg and several reports of purchases of 0.5, 1, 2, 3 or 4 kg of fertilizer, probably referred to the number of 50 kg bags instead. In countries where there is consistent regional price variation, we show that interpolation methods can be used to estimating unobserved local prices. In this paper we focus on one particular data gap: the spatial variation in the price of fertilizer. CAN is also known as nitro-limestone. This, while producing smooth surfaces, TPS will not necessarily return the observed value for a sampled point. Urea was most expensive in three landlocked countries (Burundi: 1.51, Uganda: 1.49, and Burkina Faso: 1.49 USD kg-1). Figure 2: Fertilizer consumption in South Africa, 2009 - 2018 Source: FERTASA Fertilisers are essential for ensuring plants receive the nutrition they need to flourish and grow. Out of seventeen countries only in Burundi the median urea price was higher than the median NPK price; in Benin, Ghana, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Togo, and Zambia it was about the same, and in the other countries, the urea price was lower. Writing – review & editing. The error relative to the Null model of no spatial variation, ER, was above 0.25 for ten countries. The countries with the most expensive NPK were Burkina Faso, Burundi, Malawi, Mali, Mozambique, and Uganda (between 1.57 to 1.63 USD kg-1) (S1 Table). A downside of using such algorithmic methods is that there is no direct way to estimate uncertainty. For Tanzania, models from both sources showed strong spatial variation. Correlation between transportation cost and travel time was equal to 0.26 for markets over 50,000 inhabitants and 0.20 for markets over 250,000 inhabitants. Africa Fertilizers market is projected to grow at a CAGR of 5.1% during the forecast period (2020-2025). Made in South Africa Fertilizer Npk Directory - Offering Wholesale South African Fertilizer Npk from South Africa Fertilizer Npk Manufacturers, Suppliers and Distributors at TradeKey.com Ghana and Nigeria had the lowest median NPK prices (0.85 and 1.02 USD kg-1). It is especially used for growing vegetables, flowers or helping balance infertile soils. All the prices are non-subsidized. In this case, transportation cost (USD kg-1 of purchased fertilizer) by transportation type range between 0.01 to 0.05 USD kg- (Table 4). For the regional model, there were many more samples in the countries for which we had LSMS data. Access -50, -100, and -250: travel time (hours) to the nearest town with over 50,000 inhabitants, over 100,000 inhabitants, and over 250,000 inhabitants. You have already submitted feedback. However, the spatial prediction of the combined model could be more realistic mostly in the south-east where no data from Africa Fertilizer was reported (Fig 8). Talborne Vita Grow 2:3:2 (16) Best suited for : All new plantings General garden feed Root + bulb vegetable Advantages : Promotes sturdy + healthy growth Complete feed NPK + trace nutrients No burn Sustained release over 4 months Best time to apply : New plantings Yearly rate of increase** 8%. In South Africa NPK products are named using a numerical system e.g. Discover a faster, simpler path to publishing in a high-quality journal. View Range. We propose that spatial price estimation methods such as the ones we employ here may serve for better approximating heterogeneous economic market landscapes, until such time as truly comprehensive local market price information systems become available. We had 159 cases from twelve countries from Africa Fertilizer data where we had subsidized and non-subsidized fertilizer prices from the same town. The range in the predicted relative prices within the countries was between 0.59 and 1.40 (Figs 5 and 6). within or near the village, within or near the nearest urban center, outside the district or region). They both showed higher prices in the northwest, but they did not agree on prices in the south. Yes Potassium chloride 57%. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0227764.s001. These differences can likely help explain differential patterns of agricultural input use. Explore. We compiled local market price data for urea fertilizer, a source of inorganic nitrogen, in 1729 locations in eighteen countries in two regions (West and East Africa) from 2010–2018 to understand patterns in the spatial variation in fertilizer prices. The slope of the regression models between subsidized and non-subsidized prices varied from 0.18 to 0.78 USD kg-1 with a mean of 0.61 ± 0.19 USD kg-1 (Fig 1). The black line represents y = x. 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