Stewardship

OUR ROLE IN STEWARDSHIP

At KAS, we strive to provide growers with nutrient solutions to help make them and their inputs be more efficient — all so they can meet the rising demands of a growing population.

At KAS, we strive to provide growers with nutrient solutions to help make them and their inputs more efficient — all so they can meet the rising demands of a growing population. As their challenges grow, it becomes more vital for us to do our part. Whether it’s boosting yield potential or minimizing the impact on our environment, we’re always striving for increased effectiveness and even stronger results.

Stewardship is at the foundation of all KAS products. It’s threaded throughout our history. And it’s what will continue to push us forward into a brighter future.

STEWARDSHIP VISION

Being good stewards means going above and beyond to empower and help others. It’s a major part of the Koch Industries Stewardship Framework and a key factor in every decision we make.

We help people improve their lives by providing products and services they value more highly than their alternatives. We experiment and innovate to responsibly create more value while consuming fewer resources. We seek mutually beneficial outcomes with customers, employees, suppliers, communities and other key constituencies.

VIEW STEWARDSHIP FRAMEWORK

COMBATING INEFFICIENCY

Macro and micronutrients are critical to crop production, but if crops are unable to access these necessary nutrients, crop yield is compromised and the grower’s bottom line suffers. That’s why we offer a suite of solutions designed to combat loss and help growers increase their nutrient use efficiency — so growers can do the most within their operation.

Nitrogen Loss

Depending on factors such as weather, soil texture and environmental conditions, nitrogen fertilizer is susceptible to losing up to 50 percent of its nitrogen via three loss mechanisms: ammonia volatilization, denitrification and nitrate leaching.

Even Distribution

Making nutrients accessible when and where they’re needed most promotes better crop performance. Our solutions are helping growers avoid reduced yield by effectively delivering nutrients throughout the growing season.

Young Crop Nutrient Needs

Cold, wet soils can restrict access to critical nutrients which can cause poor emergence. Young crops can struggle to access nutrients in the root zone needed for early-season growth.

FOSTERING STEWARDSHIP

KAS is forward-thinking and constantly seeking products and solutions that allow nutrients to be more efficient than they are today. Our foundation for this practice is the 4R Nutrient Stewardship¹ initiative: an innovative and science-based approach that offers enhanced environmental protection, increased production, increased farmer profitability and improved sustainability. The concept is to use the right fertilizer source, at the right rate, at the right time, with the right placement.

As an industry leader, we also search for opportunities to share our knowledge and learn from others. It’s why KAS employees participate in well-known organizations and industry associations. These include the 4R Nutrient Stewardship, as well as The Fertilizer Institute, Fertilizer Canada, Illinois Nutrient Research and Education Council, Agriculture’s Clean Water Alliance and others.

Protecting Valuable Nutrients

KAS research² has shown that CENTURO® nitrogen stabilizer is proven to slow nitrification which reduces the potential for leaching and denitrification and minimizes potential losses to the environment.

Enhancing Grower Efficiency

Across seven third party studies, SUPERU® fertilizer, a dual inhibitor, reduced nitrous oxide emissions by an average of 41%.³

EMPLOYEE EMPOWERMENT

Personal career growth is a cornerstone of the KAS employee experience. Every member of our organization shares the belief that success comes when each of us is empowered to discover and develop our own skills and interests. That’s because doing so allows us all to contribute in a more meaningful way, and ultimately, be more successful for our business and those we serve.

Members of our teams are provided with the tools and education they need for pursuing their continued development. Not only do we give our full support from the get-go with access to internships, but we also offer everyone room to create their own opportunities. By empowering employees to find purposeful ways to contribute, we further commit ourselves to providing a more rewarding and enriching workplace.

We seek to create opportunities based on an individual’s unique gifts and potential to contribute. By harnessing those skills and passions, and by encouraging everyone to be active in their learning, we can more effectively push to be our best selves.

Finally, we believe a supervisor’s primary role is to support employee development. This is accomplished by designing roles that fit, coaching and mentoring, seeking and using their knowledge and ideas, removing barriers, and encouraging role changes (anywhere across Koch companies) that enable them to fully realize their potential.

“At Koch you are encouraged to think and challenge if something needs to be changed or improved. Many experiments will ‘fail’, but I don't consider it failure if you’re moving forward. Sometimes you have to be realistic… but if I have a good experiment and am going the right direction? Yeah, I’ll keep pushing forward.”

Ahmed Iman

Chemist

“The most rewarding part of my job is making sure the customers get what they want. They work very hard, so we dig in and try to find solutions for them. We want to bring them products that work more efficiently than what we have now. I have a high interest in making sure people get what they paid for as efficiently as possible.”

Doug DeGroot

Brand Expansion Manager

“I’ve gained a greater appreciation for all the work our customers do to feed the world. The population is growing so fast, and we only have so many resources, so I’ve become passionate about how our technology can help farmers. And being able to see the impact of our supply chain processes and getting positive feedback from our customers is very rewarding.”

Nic Murillo

Manager of Product Planning and Automation

“I feel very privileged to do this work. KAS has built a culture of respect that I appreciate. Instead of trying to force me into a preconceived mold, they’ve allowed me to be the geeky scientist that I am.”

Stacey Wertz

Research Chemist

TAKE THE NEXT STEP

Our people make us, but it’s our stewardship-focused products that make farming more efficient and rewarding. Keep getting to know KAS by learning a little more about who we are, get to know more about where we’re looking for innovation, or explore our lineup of proven solutions to see how they can increase nutrient use efficiency while still achieving yield goals.

Who We Are

Meet the teams who are working together to help feed the world.

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Innovation

See what steps we're taking to create value through growth and development.

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Solutions

Browse nutrient management, nutrient protection and seed enhancement solutions.

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¹ The 4R approach is endorsed and supported by the International Plant Nutrition Institute, The Fertilizer Institute, the Canadian Fertilizer Institute and the International Fertilizer Industry Association.

²University of Arkansas lab incubation study 2019; University of Nebraska-Lincoln 2019 and 2020 Miss State lysimeter data.

³Range of 30 – 50%. Liter EPA EEF Challenge Submission data: 30% reduction - corn (Chatterjee et al, 2016); 34% reduction - corn (Chatterjee et al, 2016); 45% reduction - corn (Yang et al, 2016); 35% reduction - corn (Eagle et al, 2017); 48% reduction - irrigated no-till corn (Halvorson et al, 2010); 53% reduction - semi-arid irrigated corn (Dugan et al, 2017); 43.8% reduction - sandy loam soil (Awale and Chatterjee, 2017)