Nutrient management practices and governmental policies regulating nutrient use in China, Latin America and European Union

摘要

The intensification and specialization of crop and animal production have greatly contributed to feeding the increasing global human population, but have also contributed to increased nutrient losses and to contamination of groundwater and surface waters and to loss of biodiversity. As the demand for food and feed will continue to increase during the next decades, there is an urgent need for improving nutrient use efficiency to be able to satisfy both agricultural and environmental targets. This paper reviews nutrient management practices and governmental policies in three contrasting world regions. Four stages in agricultural development are distinguished, i.e., from traditional to modern to industrialized to regulated agriculture. Nutrient use decreases from stage (1) to (2), but increases again in stage (4). There is need and opportunity for drastic improving nutrient use efficiency. The challenge is to implement effective, site-specific governmental policies to produce the required amounts of food and feed within ecological limits. Huge efforts are needed in research, education, demonstration and extension.