Use of mineral fertilisers in EU agriculture rose to 9.8 million tonnes in 2024, up 6.0% on the 9.2 million tonnes used in 2023.
The total was still 15.8% below the relative peak recorded in 2017, Eurostat reported on Friday.
The data covers mineral fertilisers — also called inorganic fertilisers — containing nitrogen and phosphorus, which are widely used to support crop growth.
Nitrogen-based fertiliser use rose to an estimated 8.9 million tonnes in 2024, a year-on-year increase of 5.8%.
The highest use of nitrogen fertilisers was recorded in France (1.8 million tonnes), Germany (1.1 million tonnes) and Spain (0.9 million tonnes).
Phosphorus use also increased
Phosphorus fertiliser use totalled 0.9 million tonnes in 2024, up 7.7% compared with 2023, Eurostat said.
Spain (0.14 million tonnes), France (0.12 million tonnes), Italy (0.10 million tonnes), Romania (0.09 million tonnes) and Germany (0.07 million tonnes) accounted for over half of the EU’s phosphorus fertiliser use.
While nitrogen and phosphorus fertilisers can boost crop yields, excessive use can lead to nutrient leaching — where nutrients run off into the environment — contributing to water and soil pollution.
