THE company planning to mine the plant fertiliser polyhalite from under the North York Moors National Park has released the latest results from its ongoing crop study.
In its bid to prove the importance of the mineral in meeting the global demand for food, Sirius Minerals has been working on crop studies with Durham University and Shandong Agricultural University, in China.
The latest studies validate previous results on testing involving major crops including corn, cotton, oilseed rape and wheat.
Durham University’s work shows polyhalite outperforms muriate of potash, a source of potassium fertiliser, in tests on young wheat growth.
Chris Fraser, managing director of Sirius, said the results added further weight to business case behind the York Potash project, which has outlined plans for a mine near Whitby with the creation of more than 1,000 jobs.
Mr Fraser said: “This latest set of impressive results continue to confirm that POLY4 (polyhalite) is a valuable and effective multi-nutrient fertiliser. I have no doubt that polyhalite will play a major role in helping to meet the increasing global demand for food.”
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