Under a shed in north India, women scoop cow dung, lumps of unrefined sugar and flour to produce biofertiliser part of a growing effort to tackle anxieties over the supply of chemical fertilisers. India eyes biofertilisers after Mideast war stoked supply fears Demand for the organic blend has risen in the country in recent weeks as farmers prepare for the monsoon planting season, with concerns mounting over the availability of diammonium phosphate, a key ingredient in chemical fertiliser. India is among the world’s largest consumers of chemical fertilisers, using roughly 63 million tonnes annually. But the Middle East conflict has strained shipping routes through the Strait of Hormuz, a key route for supplies, heightening unease among farmers ahead of the July-October sowing period. While biofertilisers remain a niche input, interest is being driven by supply uncertainty, government promotion of sustainable farming and growing awareness of soil degradation. The domestic biofertiliser market is still modest valued at roughly $150 million but expanding at the rate of about 10 percent as more farmers experiment with alternatives. “We …