Talking SOP May 2009 [PDF, 477.17 Kb] - Tessenderlo Group

S u l p h a t e o f P o t a s h n e w s f f r o m T e s s e n d e r l o G r o u p
May 2009
Tessenderlo Group announces
organisational changes within its
Business Group Chemicals
In order to be prepared for future business challenges, a number of
organisational and individual job role changes took place at Tessenderlo Group
at the beginning of 2009.
In this issue
Rice: an essential crop to feed
the world p2
Update: Business Group
Chemicals’ customer services
team p4
Pol Deturck now leads the Business Group
Chemicals as Business Group Director. He
reports to Frank Coenen, who has been
promoted to Chief Operations Officer of
Tessenderlo Group.
Pol Deturck, Director Business Group Chemicals
The Business Group Chemicals is now organised
around four main product clusters:
Fertilizers-Sulphates
Phosphates (Aliphos)
Organic Chlorine Derivatives (OCD)
Chlor-alkali/PVC-MVC.
Creation of Aliphos
The phosphates activities have been clustered in
a new dedicated organisation named Aliphos,
which will operate as an independent unit.
Patrick Losson is leading Aliphos, reporting to
Pol Deturck. He is assisted commercially by
Paolo Cerato as Sales Director and Frank
Ruyseveldt as Marketing Manager.
Aliphos
T H E N A M E I N F E E D I N G R E D I E N T S
New Director for Fertilizers & OCD
Wim Poot will join Tessenderlo Group on July 1,
as Business Units Director Fertilizers-Sulphates &
OCD, reporting directly to Pol Deturck. Wim
obtained a Masters Degree in Agricultural
Sciences from the University of Ghent and
specialised in Business Administration at the
Insead Business School. He has more than
20 years experience of leading business-tobusiness
sales departments at various European
companies in the food industry.
New commercial organisation for
Fertilizers-Sulphates
Fertilizers-Sulphates activities remain within the
Business Group Chemicals. Nicolas White is
now leading the Fertilizers-Sulphates business as
Sales & Marketing Manager, and will report
directly to Wim Poot.
The following have also joined the Fertilizers-
Sulphates team: Denis Clement, responsible for
sales in Latin America, South-East Asia, Greece
and Turkey; Roger Le Long, responsible for
sales in Northern, Eastern and Southern Africa
and West Asia (including the Middle East); Juana
Martinez, responsible for sales in Spain and
Portugal; François Berhocoirigoin, responsible
for sales in France and Western Africa; Jan Mast,
responsible for sales in Continental Europe (from
Benelux eastwards, excluding Italy and Greece,
and including the Nordic countries), as well as in
the former Soviet Union and Canada; and Salim
Ghazal (Tessenderlo Kerley), who is responsible
for sales in the Near East.
Michel Marchand, Technical Manager Fertilizers,
is responsible for the technical support offered to
clients, as well as our agronomic activities within
the International Potash Institute (IPI) and the
Sulphate of Potash Information Board (SOPIB).
Nicolas White is also responsible for sales in the
USA, Australia, New Zealand and Iran.
Wim Poot, Director Business Units Fertilizers & OCD
Assistance from the Aliphos team
The Fertilizers-Sulphates team is also being
assisted by certain members of the Aliphos team.
In addition to their principal activity of selling the
Aliphos ® product range, the following members of
the Aliphos team are dedicating a part of their
time to Fertilizers-Sulphates sales.
Willie Dawson is responsible for Fertilizers-
Sulphates sales in the UK and Ireland; Lodovica
Boggian is responsible for Fertilizers-Sulphates
sales in Italy; Gert-Jan Visser is assisting
Fertilizers-Sulphates sales in the Benelux region,
particularly in Belgium; and Christophe Luittre is
assisting with Fertilizers-Sulphates sales in France
(particularly in the north-east).
These changes come at a time when all those
involved in the fertilizer business are faced with
difficult market conditions. Our clients can be
confident that Tessenderlo Group will strive to
work more closely than ever with them in order to
fully understand the difficulties they are facing and
to explore together all possible solutions to get
business moving once again.
SoluPotasse ® GranuPotasse ® Standard SOP

Rice: an essential crop to feed the world
Rice ranks second in world grain production after maize, which is partly used for animal feed, and ahead of wheat. With more
than 650 million tons produced on 150 million hectares, rice is the dominant staple food in many countries, providing 20% of
the calories consumed by humans globally. A very large part of rice production is in the hands of small farmers for local
consumption, with exports representing less than 1% of world production. According to the FAO, the USA is the main rice
exporter in the world accounting for 80% of the total tonnage exported.
Rice belongs to the Poaceae family with origins in
Asia. From this wild rice, most countries today
cultivate varieties of the oryza type, which has
around 20 different species, although only two of
them are cultivated.
Oryza sativa is a common Asian rice, originating in
the Far East at the foot of the Himalayas. O. sativa
japonica (or sinica) grew on the Chinese side of
the mountains and O. sativa indica on the Indian
side. The majority of cultivated varieties belong to
these species, which are characterised by their
plasticity and taste qualities.
Table 2 : Main rice production areas
in the world
Table 1: Main rice production and cropping areas in the world
Country Production Area Country Production Area
(1,000 tons) (1,000 ha) (1,000 tons) (1,000 ha)
China 187,040 29,495 USA 8,956 1,112
India 141,134 44,000 Pakistan 8,300 2,600
Indonesia 57,048 12,165 Egypt 6,665 668
Bangladesh 43,504 11,200 Cambodia 5,995 2,542
Vietnam 35,566 7,305 Korea 5,959 950
Myanmar 32,610 8,200 Nigeria 4,677 3,000
Thailand 27,879 10,360 Nepal 3,680 1,439
Philippines 16,000 4,250 Madagascar 3,596 1,300
Brazil 11,080 2,901 Iran 3,500 630
Japan 10,970 1,678 Sri Lanka 3,131 795
Source: FAO 2009 (2007 data)
Source: FAO 2009 (2007 data)
The japonica variety, characterised by short
grains, is usually grown in dry fields in temperate
conditions in the upland areas of Southeast Asia
and the high elevations of South Asia. The indica
variety is cropped mainly in lowland areas, which
are mostly flooded, throughout tropical Asia.
Oryza glaberrima is an annual species originating
in West Africa, covering a large region extending
from the central Niger River delta to Senegal.
Rice cultivation began simultaneously in many
countries more than 6,500 years ago. The indica
variety was probably domesticated in eastern
India, Myanmar and Thailand and the japonica
variety in southern China. The crop is known to
come in a variety of colours, including white,
brown, black, purple, and red.
Rice is widely used to prepare meal and forms the
Table 3: Nutritional content of rice varieties
basis of diets in Asia and part of nutrition in Latin
America and Africa. It contains a high percentage
of carbohydrates and is a valuable source of
potassium, phosphorus and calcium. It also
contains vitamins and iron (see table 3).
Mineral nutrition
Because rice is mostly cropped using traditional
methods, it is frequent to observe unbalanced
Brown Regular Parboiled Precooked
White
White
1/2 cup Enriched Parboiled Enriched
cooked 1/2 cup cooked 1/2 cup cooked 1/2 cup cooked
(98 g) (79 g) (88 g) (83 g)
Water (%) 71.3 54.1 63.4 63.1
Calories 108 103 100 81
Total Carbohydrates (g) 22.4 22.3 21.6 17.5
Fibre (g) 1.8 0.3 0.4 0.5
Protein (g) 2.5 2.1 2.0 1.7
Fat (g) 0.9 0.2 0.2 0.1
Vitamin B (mg) 1.5 1.2 1.2 0.73
Vitamin B1 (mg) 0.09 0.13 0.22 0.5
Vitamin B2 (mg) 0.02 0.01 0.02 0.04
Vitamin E (mg) 0.7 0.04 0.04 0.04
Iron (mg) 0.4 1.0 1.0 0.52
Phosphorus (mg) 81 34 37 12
Potassium (mg) 42 28 32 3
Calcium (mg) 10 8 17 7
Source: USDA 2002
SoluPotasse ® GranuPotasse ® Standard SOP

fertilization. It can be cropped on various soil
types. In flooded systems, soils are generally
deep clay with a high cation exchange capacity,
while in rain-fed cultivation soils are often poor.
Standard production (5 to 6 tons/ha) requires
120 kg/ha N, 35 kg/ha P 2 O 5 and 160 kg/ha K 2 O.
Phosphorus is applied before planting and, for
maximum efficacy, nitrogen and potassium are
applied in split applications throughout the
cropping period.
Potassium, a yield component
In flooded systems, rice benefits from the high
availability of potassium in the soil. Under
intensive cropping, however, or in light soils, the
mineral can be easily exhausted. Potassium
content in the leaf should not drop below 2% at
the booting stage in order to ensure enough
grains per panicle and a high 1000 grain weight.
Because the critical stage is in the later part of the
generative phase, potassium deficiency often
remains undetected by farmers.
Mt/ha
Mt/ha
Mt/ha
Graph 1 shows the role of the major elements on
grain and straw yield. Using the missing element
technique, the experiment is a perfect example of
the benefit of balanced fertilization. NPK
application improves the yield by 56% compared
to the control.
Graph 1: Effect of balanced fertilization
on rice production
Source: Egypt 2008
Graph 2: MOP and SOP effect on
rice production
Source: Indonesia 2003
Graph 3: SoluPotasse ® foliar spray on
rice production
Irrigation water may also be a source of salinity.
Although potassium chloride (MOP) is widely used
as source of potassium in rice cultivation, in areas
where there is a risk of salinity, it is advisable to
apply potassium sulphate (SOP).
Comparing SOP and MOP treatments at the
same dose of potassium illustrates the advantage
of SOP (Graph 2). Furthermore, SOP also
provides the sulphur requirement for standard rice
production.
Benefits of foliar application of
SoluPotasse ®
Because of its fast growth, rice is sensitive at a
critical stage when the roots cannot absorb
enough potassium in a short time. Foliar
application of SoluPotasse ® , Tessenderlo Group’s
soluble grade of potassium sulphate, contributes
to improved production, therefore, by augmenting
the efficiency of the basal dressing.
Graph 3 shows an example from Egypt. In
addition to a basal fertilization of 57 kg/ha K 2 O,
two foliar applications of SoluPotasse ® were
made, one at flowering and the other 10 days
later. Results from four different locations show an
increase in yield of between 6 - 28% with the foliar
spray. This increase is directly linked to the initial
yield in plots without the foliar spray and means
that foliar applications of SOP can help rice
express its fullest potential. When production is
low, the improvement is high (+28% in El Serw 1)
and, as one would expect, when production is
high the amount of the improvement is less (+6%
in El Sharkia 2).
Conclusion
Rice is an essential food in many developing
countries, especially in Asia. On a local scale, rice
production plays an important role in the
economy. Potassium can help to increase rice
production through a better balanced fertilization.
In saline conditions and for foliar application,
potassium sulphate contributes also to a higher
and better rice production, which is essential to
feed the world.
Potash deficiency in rice leaves
Deficiency symptoms include stunted plants with
dark green leaves and short stems, dark rusty
brown spots starting from the leaf tip and later
spreading over the whole leaf, drying of the leaf
tips and margins, and early senescence of old
leaves.
Source: Egypt 2007
Potassium sulphate to control salinity
Rice is extremely sensitive to salinity during the
seedling and early development phases. Yields
are reduced by a decrease in seedling stand and
poorer plant growth. Every unit of electrical
conductivity above 3.0 dS/m in the soil solution
reduces yields by 12%.
SoluPotasse ® GranuPotasse ® Standard SOP

Update on Business Group Chemicals’
customer services team
Since the fourth quarter of 2008, the customer services team for BG Chemicals has been led by
Wouter Bleukx, formerly Marketing Manager for the group’s animal feed ingredients.
In view of the organisational changes that took
place at the beginning of this year (see article on
page 1). Wouter Bleukx and his team have
reviewed the responsibilities of the various customer
services representatives (CSRs) to ensure that they
continue to offer the best possible service to clients.
The table below indicates the contact details and
responsibilities of each member of the SOP team,
headed by Ariane Goovaerts.
“As most customers probably know, Tessenderlo
Group has been working with a centralised
Customer Services Centre since 2007 and we are
convinced this has strengthened our relationship
with them,” comments Ariane. “All our customer
service representatives are responsible for handling
the complete “Order-to-Cash” process: from order
entry and transport right through to invoicing.”
“By using either the
central fax number or
central e-mail address
(see table) we are able
to guarantee immediate
processing of your
orders,” she adds.
Ariane Goovaerts
Fertilizers - Sulphates
Central OTC Fax: +322 647 3692
Central OTC mailbox: inorganics.sales@tessenderlo.com
Country Sales Manager Customer Service CSR direct line
Representative
Western Belgium Gert-Jan Visser (Aliphos) Evy Soentjens +32 13612748
Europe
Jan Mast
The Netherlands Jan Mast Dajana Cotza +32 13612730
Gert-Jan Visser (Aliphos) Maarten Verheyen +32 13612766
France François Berhocoirigoin Danielle Vandeweyer +32 13612747
Christophe Luittre (Aliphos) Sonia Viaene +32 13612759
Italy Lodovica Boggian (Aliphos) Dajana Cotza +32 13612730
Spain/Canary Islands Juana Martinez Annick Sannen +32 13612767
Portugal Juana Martinez Leentje Cardinaels +32 13612751
UK Willie Dawson (Aliphos) Maarten Verheyen +32 13612766
Ireland Willie Dawson (Aliphos) Dajana Cotza +32 13612730
Europe & FSU All other European countries Jan Mast Dajana Cotza +32 13612730
Poland, Former Soviet Jan Mast Maarten Verheyen +32 13612766
Union, Baltic States
Rest of World Turkey, Greece, Denis Clement Jessie Alenteyns +32 13612754
East Asia/Japan
Central America, Denis Clement Leentje Cardinaels +32 13612751
South America
Western Africa François Berhocoirigoin Katrien Bylemans +32 13612753
Jessie Alenteyns +32 13612754
Near East Salim Ghazal (TKI) Katrien Bylemans +32 13612753
Jessie Alenteyns +32 13612754
West Asia Roger Le Long Katrien Bylemans +32 13612753
Middle East, Northern Africa, Roger Le Long Jessie Alenteyns +32 13612754
Eastern Africa, Southern Africa
North America Nicolas White (USA) Katrien Bylemans +32 13612753
Jan Mast (Canada)
Australia, New Zealand, Iran Nicolas White Jessie Alenteyns +32 13612754
More information on Tessenderlo Group’s activities can be
found at: www.tessenderlogroup.com
Tessenderlo Group Fertilizers
giving nature a helping hand
w w w . s o p i b . c o m
Tessenderlo Chemie N.V.
Heilig Hartlaan 21, B-3980 Tessenderlo, Belgium
Tel: +32 13 612211 Fax: +32 2 647 3692
www.tessenderlogroup.com
fertilizers@tessenderlo.com
SoluPotasse ® and GranuPotasse ® are registered trademarks of Tessenderlo Group.
Thio-Sul ® , KTS ® , CaTs ® and MagThio ® are registered trademarks of Tessenderlo Kerley Inc., USA.