What Ballance Agri-Nutrients does

Ballance Agri-Nutrients is a New Zealand farmer-owned cooperative that manufactures, distributes, and advises on fertiliser products and nutrient management services for the country's primary sector. Headquartered in Mount Maunganui with 501-1,000 employees, the company operates the Kapuni gas-to-urea plant in South Taranaki, which produces approximately one third of New Zealand's domestic urea, and distributes a portfolio including SustaiN (nitrogen), SurePhos (phosphorus), Advantage, Pure Organics, Nutrimax micronutrients, Go Clear, and a lifestyle and home garden range. Ballance also runs Super Air aerial spreading, Soil Health Check, SpreadWise advisory, MitAgator sustainability tracking, and Self Service Silo pickup services.

The cooperative's core digital platform is MyBallance, which provides 24/7 online fertiliser ordering, digital farm mapping, nitrogen reporting for compliance with New Zealand's 190kg/ha dairy nitrogen limit, and an AI-enabled Ballance Assistant that handles text-based product, property, and order queries using NLP. Add-on modules include My Pasture Planner (developed with AgResearch for optimised annual nitrogen planning), Multi-Rate Spread Request with automated proof-of-application return from Tabula and Precision contractors, Digital Farm Map Ordering via mobile, and Nitrogen Reporting for regional council submission. Integrations with Landcare Research soil data and contractor systems embed MyBallance into operational farm workflows.

Ballance makes money primarily through one-time fertiliser product sales priced at time of shipment and indexed to global commodity markets, supplemented by digital platform services, aerial and precision spreading, soil testing, and sustainability advisory. Distribution runs through Nutrient Specialist direct sales, the MyBallance self-serve platform, authorised merchants and consignment stores, and direct farm delivery. Customers are predominantly New Zealand dairy farmers (primary), arable and horticulture farmers, and iwi-owned enterprises such as the M_tai Pacific Iwi Collective. Strategic direction is increasingly shaped by the Kapuni Project, a multi-partner green hydrogen and wind initiative reaching financial close in February 2026 with commissioning targeted for 2027.

Name

Ballance Agri-Nutrients

Legal name

Ballance Agri-Nutrients Limited

Website

https://ballance.co.nz

Company type

Private

Founded year

2001

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

Ballance Agri-Nutrients is a New Zealand farmer-owned cooperative that manufactures and distributes fertiliser products (including approximately one third of NZ's urea via the Kapuni plant) and provides the MyBallance digital farm management platform with nitrogen compliance reporting for dairy farmers nationwide.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Agricultural Fertiliser Manufacturing

NAICS

Nursery, Garden Center, and Farm Supply Retailers (444240), Nursery, Garden Center, and Farm Supply Retailers (44424)

SIC

Wholesale-Farm Product Raw Materials (5150), Agricultural Services (700)

akta.pro primary industry

NPK/Compound & Blended Fertilizers (Granular Blends, Bulk Blending) (AFABABAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Turf & Ornamental Specialty Fertilizers (Golf, Sports Turf, Landscaping) (AFABACAM), Nutrient Management & Fertility Optimization Analytics (AFABAMAJ), Nutrient Stewardship & Soil Fertility Management (4R Nutrients, Compost, Biofertilizers) (AFAGAMAE), NPK & Compound/Blended Fertilizers (IMAEAEAD)

Keywords

• Crop nutrient products
• Fertiliser manufacturing
• Farm nutrient management
• Agricultural cooperative
• Digital farm platform

Headquarters

HQ city

Tauranga

HQ country

New Zealand

HQ region

Oceania

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Fertiliser Product Sales: Ballance sells fertiliser products including SustaiN, SurePhos, Advantage, Pure Organics, and micronutrients to farmer shareholders and customers. Products are priced at time of shipment and subject to global commodity market movements.
2. Local Urea Manufacturing: Ballance operates the Kapuni gas-to-urea plant which manufactures approximately one third of New Zealand's urea annually, providing a domestic supply component to the nutrient mix.
3. Digital Platform Services: MyBallance digital platform provides farm management tools including nitrogen reporting, order management, and farm mapping services.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Ballance Agri-Nutrients manufactures and distributes a range of fertiliser products (SustaiN nitrogen, SurePhos phosphorus, Advantage, Pure Organics, Nutrimax micronutrients including Selenium, Molybdenum, Cobalt, Boron and Copper, plus Go Clear and Lifestyle/Home Garden ranges) through its Kapuni urea plant and imported nutrients. It also provides the MyBallance digital farm management platform for ordering, nitrogen reporting and farm mapping, aerial spreading via Super Air, soil testing, spread advisory and farm sustainability services to New Zealand farmers.

Product overview

Ballance Agri-Nutrients operates as a farmer-owned cooperative providing an integrated portfolio of fertiliser products and digital farm management services. The core offering centres on MyBallance, a digital platform that consolidates fertiliser ordering, nutrient reporting, farm mapping, and spreading coordination. The product line includes major fertiliser brands (SustaiN, SurePhos, Advantage, Pure Organics, Nutrimax micronutrients, Go Clear, and Lifestyle/Home Garden range) alongside digital add-on modules such as My Pasture Planner (nitrogen planning with AgResearch), Nitrogen Limit Management, Multi-Rate Spread Request, and Digital Farm Map Ordering. Services include Super Air aerial spreading, MitAgator environmental tracking, Soil Health Check, Mapping Services, and SpreadWise advisory. The portfolio is complemented by Farm Sustainability Services and Self Service Silo for operational flexibility.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• MyBallance: Digital platform for farm nutrient management allowing 24/7 ordering, nutrient tracking, and nitrogen reporting
• SustaiN
• SurePhos
• Super Air
• MitAgator
• Ballance Assistant
• My Pasture Planner
• Go Clear
• Advantage
• Pure Organics
• NutriMax

Products and services

• MyBallance Digital farm management platform providing 24/7 online access to fertiliser information, nutrient reports, order placement, and farm mapping. Available via web and mobile app for New Zealand farmers.
• SustaiN Nitrogen fertiliser product designed for efficient nutrient delivery to pastures and crops, sold to New Zealand farmers.
• SurePhos Phosphorus-based fertiliser product for soil nutrient management in pastoral and cropping systems.
• Advantage Specialised fertiliser product range for enhanced crop and pasture performance.
• Pure Organics Organic fertiliser products for organic farming and sustainable agriculture operations, certified to BioGro standards.
• Nutrimax Micronutrients Micronutrient fertiliser range including Selenium, Molybdenum, Cobalt, Boron, and Copper products for addressing trace element deficiencies in livestock and crops.
• Go Clear Product range for crop protection/clearance used alongside fertiliser applications.
• Lifestyle and Home Garden Fertiliser products designed for home garden and lifestyle block use.
• Super Air Aerial spreading service for fertiliser application across farm properties.
• MitAgator Farm sustainability tool for tracking and managing the environmental impact of farming practices.
• Self Service Silo Self-service fertiliser collection service for customers to pick up orders from designated locations.
• Soil Health Check Soil testing and analysis service for assessing nutrient levels and soil health metrics.
• Mapping Services Digital farm mapping services for creating and managing paddock boundaries and property maps within MyBallance.
• SpreadWise Precision spreading advisory service for optimised fertiliser application.
• Farm Sustainability Services Advisory services helping farmers meet environmental requirements and improve sustainability outcomes.
• My Pasture Planner Nitrogen fertiliser planning tool developed in collaboration with AgResearch that uses farm-specific data including digital farm maps, soil tests, and regional pasture growth data to generate optimised annual nitrogen application plans with timing, rate, and placement recommendations.

Quantifiable outcome

• Approximately one third of New Zealand's urea manufactured locally through Kapuni plant
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

AI capability2 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and major.

• Hiringa EnergycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 6 February 2026Hiringa Energy leads the Kapuni Project - New Zealand's first integrated wind and green hydrogen production facility in South Taranaki. Ballance is a key partner in this landmark initiative for the country's energy transition, decarbonising transport, energy, industry, and agriculture sectors. Financial close achieved February 2026, operational target 2027.
• VestascoreTechnology or Integration · 6 February 2026Vestas was awarded the contract to supply and install four V162-6.4 MW EnVentus wind turbines (26 MW capacity) for the Kapuni Wind Farm, plus a 20-year service agreement. Commissioning expected in 2027.
• ToddmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 6 February 2026Partner in the Kapuni Project - New Zealand's largest green hydrogen facility, supporting integrated renewable energy and green hydrogen production in South Taranaki.
• PKWmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 6 February 2026Partner in the Kapuni Project - New Zealand's largest green hydrogen facility, supporting integrated renewable energy and green hydrogen production in South Taranaki.
• Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE)majorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 6 February 2026Government partner in the Kapuni Project supporting New Zealand's energy transition and green hydrogen production capacity.
• AgResearchcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAgResearch collaborated with Ballance to develop My Pasture Planner - a nitrogen fertiliser planning tool that helps farmers optimise nitrogen use by applying science to planning based on farm-specific data.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• EuroChem Group: Vertically integrated global fertiliser producer spanning nitrogen, phosphate, and potash, with growing presence in specialty fertilisers. Comparable to Ballance in offering a full NPK-plus-specialty portfolio with own manufacturing, though at international scale with diversified geographic exposure.
• ICL Group: Global specialty fertilisers and specialty plant nutrition producer offering controlled-release, water-soluble, and foliar fertilisers. Comparable to Ballance's NutriMax micronutrient and specialty product lines, with similar positioning in higher-margin, science-backed plant nutrition beyond commodity NPK.
• CF Industries: North America's largest nitrogen fertiliser manufacturer, producing urea, ammonia, and UAN. Comparable to Ballance in nitrogen-centric manufacturing focus and exposure to natural-gas-based production economics, though serving primarily North American agricultural markets.
• OCI Global: Global nitrogen, methanol, and natural gas-based fertiliser producer with significant urea manufacturing capacity. Directly comparable to Ballance's Kapuni gas-to-urea operations in production model and nitrogen product mix, though at global scale and with different end-market geography.
• Ravensdown: New Zealand's other major farmer-owned fertiliser cooperative, directly competing with Ballance across NPK products, nutrient management services, and aerial spreading. Operates a similar cooperative governance structure and customer base of NZ farmers, making it the closest head-to-head peer.

Others

• Fonterra (Farm Source / NZ Farmers Fertiliser): NZ dairy cooperative owning Farm Source retail and previously NZ Farmers Fertiliser. Adjacent ecosystem player rather than direct competitor today, but shares Ballance's cooperative governance model and farmer-shareholder base, and historically competed in NZ fertiliser distribution — making it a relevant comparison for distribution and farmer-services strategy.

Broad incumbents

• Yara International: Global nitrogen fertiliser leader and one of the world's largest producers of urea, ammonia, and NPK compounds. While Ballance is NZ-only, Yara's product portfolio, crop nutrition advisory, and digital farming tools (e.g., Yara FarmCare) closely parallel Ballance's integrated fertiliser-plus-digital offering at global scale.
• Nutrien: World's largest provider of crop inputs and services, combining potash, nitrogen, and phosphate production with a global retail network and digital agronomy platform. Comparable to Ballance as a vertically integrated fertiliser-plus-digital-agronomy business, though at vastly larger scale and with broader crop input categories.

Emerging players

• Haifa Group: Israel-based specialty fertiliser company focused on water-soluble, controlled-release, and foliar plant nutrition products. Comparable to Ballance's NutriMax and Pure Organics specialty ranges in product positioning and precision-nutrition focus, particularly relevant to high-value horticulture and arable segments Ballance also targets.

Regional players

• Incitec Pivot: Australia's largest fertiliser manufacturer and distributor (Dyno Nobel explosives and Incitec Pivot Fertilisers), serving trans-Tasman agricultural markets. Comparable to Ballance in NPK product mix and on-farm agronomic service model, with overlap into horticulture and broadacre crops, though primarily focused on Australian geography.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCpIVZXndoe4cy36B4LgXFoQ
• Facebookfacebook.com/BallanceNZ
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ballance-agri-nutrients

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Ballance Agri-Nutrients