TK47®: An Advanced and Integrated Solution for Sustainable Agriculture

TORONTO, May 26, 2015 /CNW/ -Verde Potash (TSX: "NPK") ("Verde" or the "Company") is pleased to provide an update on the Company's market development for ThermoPotash, its premium agri-tech fertilizer product, now branded as TK47^®. TK47 is a multi-function innovative product that, in a single grain, combines benefits for plant nutrition, plant protection, water use efficiency, soil improvement and increased sustainability.

Verde's efforts to fully value the wide array of benefits offered by TK47 have generated 24 partnerships with some of the world's largest food producers. The product is being used on sugarcane, coffee, potato, corn, soybeans, oranges, eucalyptus, tomato, tobacco, garlic and carrot.

Going forward, in order to strengthen the brand and better reflect the product's quality of being more than an advanced source of potash, ThermoPotash will be referred to as TK47.

TK47: more than a potash fertilizer

In 2009, at the beginning of agronomic research, TK47 was understood as only a source of potash. Today, after numerous agronomic studies involving the long-term impact of TK47 across a multitude of crops, a number of TK47's other benefits have been identified and new research continues to reveal additional advantages in terms of increased productivity, sustainability and profitability. Research has now shown that by integrating TK47 into their nutrient management systems, farmers benefit from TK47's multi-functionality in 5 key aspects: plant nutrition, plant protection, water use efficiency, soil improvement and sustainable agriculture.

Plant nutrition:

• TK47 offers a high concentration of nutrients in a single homogenous grain: Potassium, Calcium, Magnesium and Silicon;
• TK47 provides nutrients synchronously with the needs of the plant;
• TK47 contains zero chlorine and no salinity;
• TK47 offers traces of over 40 minerals relevant for plant nutrition, such as: Sulphur, Phosphate, Manganese, Zinc, Copper and Cobalt;
• TK47 assists in the nutritional balance of the soil and plants.

Plant protection:

• TK47 activates the plants defence mechanisms;
• TK47 increases natural plant resistance against diseases and pests;
• TK47 strengthens the plants resistance against abiotic stress: drought, cold, heat, light, salt and metals toxicity.

Water use efficiency:

• TK47 improves the plants water use efficiency;
• TK47 reduces evapotranspiration, loss of water from the soil both by evaporation and by transpiration from the plants growing thereon;
• TK47 increases the soils water retention capacity.

Soil improvement:

• TK47 significantly increases the availability of phosphate in the soil;
• TK47 raises the soils pH level;
• TK47 increases the soils capacity to retain nutrients.

Sustainable agriculture:

• TK47 nutrients are not lost by leaching, avoiding water table pollution;
• TK47 is certificated for use in organic agriculture;
• TK47 reduces the need for multiple product applications thus optimizing plant nutrient management systems;
• TK47 reduces the need for pesticides, fungicides and other chemicals;
• TK47 reduces CO₂ emissions by potentially eliminating the use of limestone.

Market development of TK47

Since market development began in 2011, field and lab tests have shown TK47 to be a superior fertilizer product compared to conventional and other premium potassium sources. After two years, the Company received agricultural results far superior than its initial expectations. This generated a high level of interest from agriculture companies and allowed Verde to fully appreciate TK47 not only as a highly efficient source of potash but as an innovative and sustainable plant superfood that provides a spectrum of other benefits.

Harvested coffee grown using TK47 was classified as Specialty Coffee, contrary to the same coffee fertilized with KCl, and field tests have shown that potassium delivered by TK47 was nearly 3 times more effective than potassium delivered by KCl (see press release dated March 11, 2014).

In a comparison between TK47 and K-Mag®, another premium potash fertilizer, TK47's results of potato dry matter were 3.7% higher and soils showed residual potassium levels 3 to 5 times higher than that of the K-Mag® plot.

A 2-year field study demonstrated that the application of TK47 increased the productivity of sugarcane using half the dosage of potassium per hectare (see press release dated April 30, 2014).

In 2014, the Company intensified market development efforts in view of TK47's potential demand in Brazil. Verde has since formed several partnerships with large corporate growers and institutions that collectively could consume over 5 million tonnes of TK47 per year.

President and CEO, Cristiano Veloso, commented: "It has become clear that selling TK47 only for its potash component is like selling an iPhone only for its calling capacity; both deliver much more to the customer. Our intent for the past 16 months has been to promote this awareness across Brazil's market. Our team, assisted by Director Alysson Paulinelli, has had numerous meetings marketing TK47 to leading Brazilian producers. Trials by major partners are allowing them to evaluate how TK47 will allow them to improve their current nutrient management system, saving costs while increasing sustainability and profitability."

About Verde Potash

Verde Potash is a Brazil focused agri-tech company promoting sustainable and profitable agriculture through the development of its Cerrado Verde Project. Cerrado Verde, located in the heart of Brazil's largest agriculture market, is the source of a potash-rich deposit from which the Company intends to produce TK47 and potassium chloride ("KCl"). TK47 is a multi-function innovative product that combines benefits for plant nutrition, plant protection, water use efficiency, soil improvement and increased sustainability. Verde's mission is to offer technological and intelligent solutions that meet the needs of an increasingly demanding and conscious market. The Company is also developing its Calcario limestone project, limestone being a key raw material in Verde's process to produce TK47 and KCl.

About the Cerrado Verde Potash Project

Cerrado Verde is a unique project: 1) its high grade potash rock outcrops and is amenable to strip mining, allowing fast construction of a scalable operation; 2) it is located in the midst of the world's third largest and fastest growing fertilizer market; 3) it connects to Brazil's largest fertilizer distribution districts via existing and high quality infrastructure; 4) it has the potential to supply both TK47 and KCl to Brazil's local agriculture market from its large potash-rich deposit.

SOURCE Verde Potash Plc