Ravensdown and Ballance, as the two co-operative fertiliser sellers have been fierce rivals since they were both formed, and this lengthy court battle over this technology has heightened this rivalry.
This Econ-N product used to reduce nitrous oxide emissions is important in lowering the countries total greenhouse gas responsibilities, was developed by Ravensdown in association with Lincoln University.
As we intensify the way we farm, nitrate leaching through urine will become a major issue, and this product could become standard use and even "part of a consent to farm".
With patents granted in some overseas countries now, and others pending, this could be a nice little earner for Ravensdown which should help keep the price of fertiliser at an economic level.
Fertiliser company Ballance Agri-Nutrients has lost a High Court battle to stop rival Ravensdown from patenting the delivery method of a product that could have a big impact on making farming more sustainable reports The Herald. The two fertiliser giants have been locked down in a legal dispute over the method of applying nitrification inhibitors to grazed pastures, which are used to reduce nitrate leaching into waterways, reduce nitrous oxide emissions and increase pasture production.
Ravensdown also claims its method, eco-n that was developed by Lincoln University, will reduce potassium, calcium and magnesium leaching. The method sprays or irrigates pasture with nitrification inhibitors - it is the delivery method not the product that has been patented.
The company had already received pre-grant approval from the Commissioner of Patents. In her judgment, Justice Courtney said Ravensdown believed its method was new because it directly targets the soil, and such inhibitors had not been used in this way before. Court documents showed New Zealand's nitrous oxide emissions from animal excreta, mainly urine, account for 50 per cent of the country's nitrous oxide emissions, which make up 20 per cent of the country's total greenhouse gas emissions.
Ballance head of research Warwick Catto told the Business Herald during the trial last year that if Ravensdown was given patent approval it would benefit the company's bottom line "in the tens of millions". "It will have a significant economic impact. It will reduce competition and prices increase when a monopoly is introduced," Catto said.
Green said the battle had cost the company almost $1 million and "we now hope it is over". The company can now have patents granted in Argentina and Australia, and New Zealand, and had patents pending in Europe and the US, he said. Green said Ravensdown and Lincoln University had "heavily invested" in eco-n and they felt it was important to patent the technology in order to protect its intellectual property.
We welcome your comments below. If you are not already registered, please register to comment.
Remember we welcome robust, respectful and insightful debate. We don't welcome abusive or defamatory comments and will de-register those repeatedly making such comments. Our current comment policy is here.