Watermelon thriving with Calcium Nitrate as part of its diet

Watermelon is big business for Mr. Koon Huak, as he is currently cropping around 5,000 hectares of melon per year.

(2004-03-24) Blue Sky Agriculture, Yara's distributor of mineral fertilizer in Malaysia, is increasing activities to promote Yara Calcium Nitrate for melon, and a range of other crops. As Calcium Nitrate is an important part of the portfolio for Yara Asia, the success of Blue Sky Agriculture's activities will make a positive contribution to the overall business.

Mr. Koon Huak grows both watermelon and cantaloupmelon in peninsular Malaysia, and has a new enterprise in Indonesia. Selling to Hong Kong, Japan, and Singapore, he not only needs to know how to grow the crop, but be a leader in the marketing of watermelon. In the absence of strict guidelines, he has started to set his own quality standards and regularly checks his own produce for qualities such as sugar content. Mr. Koon Huak knows that plant nutrition can play a major role in crop quality, and that is why some years ago, he started to work with Mr K.K. Chou of Blue Sky Agriculture, a part Yara owned distributor in Malaysia.

Mr. Chou has used Yara's Calcium Nitrate and Kristalon in the mineral fertilizer programme for watermelon since 1996. Throughout these years, both he and mr. Koon and his growers have noticed that the crop is healthier and of better quality since the adoption of calcium nitrate as part of their programme.

Mr. Koon Huak recalls a recent conversation with a customer selling his melons in Hong Kong, "current low demand for melon has meant that fruit has remained in the shop longer than preferred. Melons from other suppliers, have started to rot, whilst those supplied by me remain in good condition. Whilst, I cannot say it was entirely due to the use of Calcium Nitrate, I am sure calcium nitrate has had some part to play"

Blue Sky Agriculture is increasing it's activities to promote Yara Calcium Nitrate for leafy veggie, citrus, melon, and a range of other crops. Calcium Nitrate and prilled NPK's form an important part of their business and is contributing to the quality of the Malaysian crops.