How Green is Your Fertilizer?

Here at Nature Safe, we try to push beyond the status quo of “going green.” From the beginning of production to the first sprout out of the soil, Nature Safe’s fertilizers are not only sustainable, they are even regenerative. 

Because the need for more eco-friendly products is skyrocketing, many manufacturers across many industries are jumping on the “going green”/eco-friendly movement as if it’s a trend. But sustainability isn’t an issue of fashion; it’s a set of practices that are meant to give back more back to the world than they take.  

Organic growers need to know about the ingredients in their fertilizer. While many brands are, indeed, compliant with USDA regulations, not every company that produces organic fertilizers is “green.” So how do you know if your fertilizer is truly “green”? 

Is It Made From Recycled Material? 

Organic fertilizers feature ingredients from animal and plant sources. This includes components such as bone, blood, and feather meal, as well as corn steep liquor. Nature Safe Fertilizers is a Darling Ingredient brand, meaning that we utilize food waste like animal by-products to create our fertilizers. In this way, give food waste that was once headed towards the landfill a new purpose, and put it to use to help grow crops that sustain life.  

How Recycling Organic Material Does More Than Just Re-Use Materials 

When you recycle any material, you aren’t just prolonging its life and usefulness—you’re effectively removing CO2 and harmful greenhouse gases from the atmosphere.  

For each metric ton of carbon dioxide that is released during the animal by-product recycling process, seven tons is sequestered. Carbon sequestration reduces  atmospheric carbon dioxide that causes climate change by removing it from the air and storing it.

Landfills release excessive amounts of CO2 into the atmosphere—particularly from the decaying organic matter in those landfills.  

Healthy, fertile soil is full of microorganisms that insulate CO2 into the ground. Landfills, however, do not do this, and all that carbon dioxide gets released back into the atmosphere. Recycling animal by-products diverts CO2 and other hazardous products not only from the atmosphere, but also from surface water and groundwater.

Do They Track Their Sustainability Goals?

As a business, our goal is to always grow and be able to do more for our customers. At Nature Safe, we also want to make sure we’re doing more for the planet. In 2022, our parent company, Darling Ingredients—who does the brunt of the work sourcing and rendering animal by-products for our fertilizers—released its first Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) report. One of the metrics this report tracked was our sustainability goals.

The ESG report included long-term, and short-term sustainability goals for the company, including a marked reduction in energy used and greenhouse gases released.

As customers can watch us in real-time create and work towards a more green business, they can be confident that they are using the most environmentally-minded products available.

Does it Have Any Green Certifications?

We want our customers to feel good about the inputs they are using on their agricultural or turf grass operation. That’s why we put in work to get official stamps of approval from governmental and independent agencies that confirm that our products, and the manufacturing processes that create them, are green.

OMRI

Luckily, this is easy for Nature Safe. We are proud to be listed with the Organic Materials Review Institute (OMRI). This institute assesses farm input products like fertilizers, pesticides, and feed, and lists them if they are fit to be used in organic farming.

The USDA only lists consumable goods as organic, not inputs like fertilizer. However, growers who farm the crops that can be “USDA certified organic” need to be very careful about the composition of the inputs they use. Every product listed by OMRI is safe for organic agriculture.

WSDA, CDFA, ODA

The western United States is terrific land for agriculture. California in particular produces almost half of the fruits, vegetables, and nuts in the United States. Washington, Oregon, and California all have special listings or certifications for input products like fertilizer.

Nature Safe Fertilizers is certified organic by the Washington State Department of Agriculture, the California Depart of Food and Agriculture’s Organic Input Materials Program, and the Oregon Department of Agriculture.

At Nature Safe, manufacturing safety and quality is our top priority. Our production facilities have embraced feed-based safety programs and reduced feed safety risks, while actively participating in approved risk management programs.

Does it Do Anything for the Soil? 

Healthy soil is a whole ecosystem, full of insects, worms, fungi, and microscopic organisms that all participate in a symbiotic relationship with the plants and their roots. If these organisms are well-fed, they can sustain plant life with fewer inputs in the future.

One of our favorite things about our organic fertilizer is that it doesn’t just avoid doing harm, it actually makes the ecosystem healthier. Whether you’re applying Nature Safe’s fertilizers to turf grass or row crops, they work by improving the soil.

This sustainable method of growth is one of the principles of regenerative agriculture. It’s a method of farming that works to improve the nearby land and ecosystems. Creating healthy soil is one the first steps to achieving this.  

A healthier environment is one fantastic benefit to improved soil, but it can also mean an improvement on growers’ bottom line. Higher yields, fewer weeds and pests, and the ability to re-plant or plant different crops, are some of the advantages to organic and sustainable agriculture that make the investment worth it.

Try Nature Safe Today 

We “went green” before it was “cool.” Be aware that, though they might bear the label, the manufacturing processes of many brands are neither ethically sound or truly organic. Here at Nature Safe Fertilizers, however, our production practices are eco-friendly from start-to-finish.

If you’re looking for organic fertilizer, products that are healthy for the environment are probably already a priority for you. Get in touch with us today, and discover how together, we can make good growing better, and even greener!