A major new technology has been developed by The University
of Nottingham, which enables all of the world’s crops to take nitrogen from the
air rather than expensive and environmentally damaging fertilisers.
Nitrogen fixation, the process by which nitrogen is
converted to ammonia, is vital for plants to survive and grow. However, only a
very small number of plants, most notably legumes (such as peas, beans and
lentils) have the ability to fix nitrogen from the atmosphere with the help of
nitrogen fixing bacteria. The vast majority of plants have to obtain nitrogen from
the soil, and for most crops currently being grown across the world, this also
means a reliance on synthetic nitrogen fertiliser.