Fertilizer in Pakistan
In the past, when there were fewer people and the demands for crops was less, the manure from animals was usually enough to keep the fields fairly fertile. Climatic conditions and continues farming have reduced the natural fertility of the soil, so artificial fertilizers are needed for better crops. Pakistan is fortunate in having some of the raw materials for these, Such as limestone and natural gas.
The use of artificial fertilizers in farming has risen from 14,000 tonnes in 1959 to almost 3,700,000 tonnes in 2007, of which 800,000 tonnes were imported. fortunately, many of the raw materials for making fertilizer are found in Pakistan, gypsum, coal, gas(as an ingredient as well as for heating the industrial processes). Even so, large amounts still have to be imported to protect the crops, particularly cotton, from damage by pests.