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Critical resource map

Exposure
← Overview

agri

Potash

Unit is thousand metric tons of K2O equivalent.

Country panel

Top import partners
  • Canada 79%USGS US import sources 2021–2024
  • Russia 12%USGS US import sources 2021–2024
  • Israel 3%USGS US import sources 2021–2024

Global totals

Reserve life
known reserves cover ~120 years at current production

Concentration

  • Canada 30.8%
  • Russia 20.5%
  • China 12.9%

Production share

  1. Canada30.8%
  2. Russia20.5%
  3. China12.9%
  4. Belarus12.3%
  5. Germany6.2%
  6. Laos4.9%
  7. Israel4.1%
  8. Jordan3.7%
  9. Chile1.2%
  10. United States1.0%
  11. Spain0.9%
  12. Other countries0.7%
  13. Brazil0.6%

Colour scale is colour-blind-safe sand to rust. Grey means no listed figure. “Other countries” is not drawn. On small screens the map is a ranked list.

Top producers

Share of listed production versus share of listed reserves.

Table alternative to the bar chart
CountryProductionReserves
Canada30.8%18.6%
Russia20.5%33.8%
China12.9%3.4%
Belarus12.3%12.7%
Germany6.2%2.5%
Laos4.9%16.9%
Israel4.1%0%
Jordan3.7%0%
Chile1.2%1.7%
United States1%3.7%

Uses

  • Potassium fertiliser; there is no substitute for potassium as a plant nutrient. 2025
  • Animal nutrition. 2025
  • Some industrial potassium chemicals. 2025

Recycling

None.

Substitution

No substitutes for potassium as an essential plant nutrient. Manure and glauconite are low-potassium alternatives.

Sources