--- title: Your food’s hidden footprint? Fertilizer use. description: Discover the hidden carbon footprint of your food focusing on fertilizers, their production, and field usage, and learn practical steps to reduce emissions. image: https://proba.earth/hubfs/Screenshot%202025-05-07%20at%2009.14.50.png --- [![Proba. In your supply chain, we make the voluntary carbon market work for you.](https://proba.earth/hs-fs/hubfs/positive.png?width=185&height=53&name=positive.png "Proba. 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Search # Your food’s hidden footprint? Fertilizer use. 6 May 2025 ![Picture of Proba](https://proba.earth/hs-fs/hubfs/Subheading%20(7).png?width=40&name=Subheading%20(7).png) [Proba](https://proba.earth/probas-blog/author/proba) ![](https://proba.earth/hubfs/Screenshot%202025-05-07%20at%2009.14.50.png) Imagine this: you take a wonderful bite of a french baguette and begin to wonder where it was made, how it was made, what kind of flour was used? And what about the extra ingredients? Going deeper: where did the wheat come from, the seeds, the soil, the fertilizer, the GHG emissions? That baguette has already gone through so many stages to get to you even before you take a bite, digest it, and…well, process it. But - did you know that 40-50% of a baguette’s total GHG emission stems from fertilizers? That’s why we call it your [food’s hidden carbon footprint](https://proba.earth/agri-food). To make sense of this journey, our partners at [Corporate Value Associates (CVA)](https://www.corporate-value.com/) visualized the full value chain, from inputs to the final loaf. At the input stage, your wheat hasn’t even begun growing yet. The fertilizer, that will be used later, is being manufactured. The production of fertilizers and pesticides releases carbon dioxide and nitrous oxide - making up roughly 11% of the baguette’s footprint already. At the farming stage, the wheat is now growing! However, the emissions at this stage are the heaviest. Fuel for trucks and farming equipment plays a role, but the major culprit is nitrous oxide, a greenhouse gas 273 times more potent than carbon dioxide, released from nitrogen fertilizers. The next stages include logistics, storage, mill, processing and so on until it reaches the consumer - all overshadowed by the emissions from just the farming stage.  ![Screenshot 2025-05-06 at 17.06.18](https://proba.earth/hs-fs/hubfs/Screenshot%202025-05-06%20at%2017.06.18.png?width=792&height=343&name=Screenshot%202025-05-06%20at%2017.06.18.png) Focusing solely on fertilizers, there’s two key stages: emissions from fertilizer production and emissions from in field/usage. If we zero in on fertilizers alone, this is a split of 30% from production, 10% transport, and 60% from field/usage. At the production level, the Haber-Bosch process, which synthesizes ammonia from nitrogen using natural gas, is heavily polluting, yet can be made cleaner using renewables. Focusing on green ammonia production, using green hydrogen (electrolysis powered by renewable energy) combined with nitrogen via Haber-Bosch but powered by wind, solar, or water, you will get green ammonia. At the field level, different types of fertilizers are used depending on crop, soil, and many other factors. There are practical interventions available. For example, adding [nitrogen stabilizers](https://proba.earth/probas-blog/nitrification-and-urease-inhibitors) can reduce on field [N₂O emissions](https://proba.earth/probas-blog/why-nitrous-oxide-matters) by 30–70%. Controlled release fertilizers (CRF, fertilizers with a coating to release the nitrogen in a more controlled way) can see a reduction of 30-60% of on field emissions.  The good thing is that adding stabilizers is both cost effective and has a very significant impact on reducing emissions. In addition it does not require major practice changes from the farmer. So it's a very good candidate to start implementing. Especially supported by our science based protocols and insetting market mechanisms for proper claims across the supply chain. Check out our nitrogen stabilizer methodology Reduce 10% to 30% of your Scope 3 footprint instantly, at half the cost, with nitrogen stabilizers. Learn how insetting and nitrogen stabilizers are a match made in heaven and can help reduce the footprint of your food.    # Share: [Share on Facebook](http://www.facebook.com/share.php?u=https://proba.earth/probas-blog/your-foods-hidden-footprint-fertilizer-use&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook) [Share on LinkedIn](http://www.linkedin.com/shareArticle?mini=true&url=https://proba.earth/probas-blog/your-foods-hidden-footprint-fertilizer-use&utm_medium=social&utm_source=linkedin) [Share on X](https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?original_referer=https://proba.earth/probas-blog/your-foods-hidden-footprint-fertilizer-use&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter&url=https://proba.earth/probas-blog/your-foods-hidden-footprint-fertilizer-use&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter&source=tweetbutton&text=Your%20food’s%20hidden%20footprint?%20Fertilizer%20use.) [Fertilizers](https://proba.earth/probas-blog/tag/fertilizers) ## Proba Food companies are asking for verified Scope 3 reductions. It starts with fertilizer. [hello@proba.earth](mailto:hello@proba.earth) [Follow me on LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/company/proba-earth/) ## Related posts Search [Methodology webinar: Adoption of nitrogen stabilizers to transition to low-carbon agriculture](https://proba.earth/probas-blog/methodology-webinar-adoption-of-nitrogen-stabilizers) [How to start a GHG Project: The step-by-step guide for Project Developers and Reporting Companies](https://proba.earth/probas-blog/how-to-start-a-ghg-project-the-step-by-step-guide-for-project-developers-and-reporting-companies) Search ![Subheading (5)](https://proba.earth/hs-fs/hubfs/Subheading%20(5).png?width=317&name=Subheading%20(5).png "Subheading (5)") [Laan van Kronenburg 14, 1183 AS Amstelveen](https://maps.app.goo.gl/aKif8v1k5m9h2zA37)   Food companies are asking for certified Scope 3 reductions. It starts with fertilizer. [Follow us on Facebook](mailto:hello@proba.earth) [Follow us on Facebook](https://www.linkedin.com/company/proba-earth/) Use cases [Quantify fertilizer emissions](https://proba.earth/quantify-fertilizer-emissions-proba) [Certify reductions](https://proba.earth/certify-emission-reductions) [Design projects](https://proba.earth/design-sustainability-projects) [Connect to buyers](https://proba.earth/connect-to-buyers) [Scope 3 progress](https://proba.earth/report-scope-3-progress) [Food companies](https://proba.earth/for-food-companies) [Commodity traders](https://proba.earth/agri-trader) [Agricultural co-ops](https://proba.earth/agri-cooperatives) [Fertilizer producers](https://proba.earth/for-fertilizer-producers) Products [All Proba products](https://proba.earth/products) [MRV Platform](https://proba.earth/mrv-platform) [GHG Methodologies](https://proba.earth/methodologies) [Inset units](https://proba.earth/inset-units) [Registry](https://proba.earth/registry) [Fertilizer calculator](https://proba.earth/fertilizer-emission-calculator) Services [Implementation services](https://proba.earth/implementation-services) [Quick scan](https://proba.earth/fertilizer-emission-calculator) Resources [Blog](https://proba.earth/probas-blog) [Document library](https://proba.earth/document-library) [Public consultation](https://proba.earth/public-consultation) [Approved VVBs](https://proba.earth/approved-vvbs) Company [About us](https://proba.earth/about-proba) [Contact us](https://proba.earth/contact) [Governance](https://proba.earth/proba-governance) [Privacy policy](https://proba.earth/proba-privacy-policy) ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@type" : "BlogPosting", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "Proba", "url" : "https://proba.earth/probas-blog/author/proba" }, "dateModified" : "2025-06-27T11:53:28.258Z", "datePublished" : "2025-05-06T15:06:56.000Z", "headline" : "Your food’s hidden footprint? 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