Will Eagle Star Minerals phosphate (fertilizer)be

Will Eagle Star Minerals phosphate (fertilizer)be an asset for years to come? Here are three rhetorical statements for you to ponder.

1)      The world population is shrinking, so feeding the world should be easier.

2)       Increasing crop yields means little to feeding the shrinking populations of the world, as we have an abundance of food to feed the world.

3)      Farmers worldwide have no need to increase crop yield.

Of course the above statements are ridiculous. EGE is quickly establishing a significant deposit of phosphate, and with the drilling program could significantly increase the data for the NI-43-101.

These are also shallow open pit deposits in a mining friendly jurisdiction. Just have some patience and allow the company to develop a resource base. Here is the phosphate outlook for 2013 from the website

WORLD POPULATION GROWTH IS DRIVING FOOD DEMAND

The world population has tripled in the last 70 years and is currently exceeding 7B. The United Nations projects a rapid continuous increase of population to over 9B by just 2050. In order to keep up with this growth, production of food must increase by a minimum 70% which in turn will increase the demand for phosphate exponentially.

UNITED NATIONS POPULATION FORECAST

The demand for ever-increasing quantities of food, driven by a growing global population, coupled with a fixed area of arable land is necessitating the use of fertilizers produced from three essential minerals Nitrogen (N), Phosphorus (P) and Potassium (K) or (NPK) to cope with the world grain shortage. Accompanying this rise in agricultural demand is the importance of agro-mineral development to sustain global phosphate reserves, which are currently depleting. It’s estimated that “peak phosphorus” production will occur by 2030, creating an enormous challenge for global food production in the foreseeable future.

PEAK PHOSPHORUS CURVE

It takes one ton of phosphate to produce every 130 tons of grain, which is why the world mines about 170 million tons of phosphate rock every year to ship around the globe and keep soils fertile. Over 80% of Phosphate reserves are held in Morocco, the largest supplier to international trade. The other two largest holders of phosphate reserves, the U.S and China, mainly keep their reserves for domestic use. The Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) forecasts global agro-mineral consumption to grow by 45% between 2005-2030 and with this demand for phosphate rock set to outstrip production within the next 20 years, the worldwide agricultural industry, and our livelihood, is set to face some major hurdles in the near future.

NPK WORLD RANKING BY DEMAND