Without fertiliser the Australian agricultural sector would bear a direct economic cost from reduced production of $12.7 billion from a total of $45.1 billion. The flow on effects would cost the Australian economy $40 billion (2009 data).
The cost to agricultural exports would be more than $9 billion which is over 3% of Australia’s total exports of goods and services.
The productivity improvement due to fertiliser use supports 107,000 workers in the agricultural industries and 300,000 workers across the economy.
These figures are drawn from an economic analysis of the Australian Fertiliser Industry by Meta Economics Consulting Group. The full paper is available below.
Australian Fertilizer Industry Value and Issues Ryan - Paper.pdf
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