prEN 17753

Inorganic fertilizers - Determination of specific contaminants

This document specifies references to methods for the determination of the following contaminants: mercury, cadmium, nickel, copper, zinc, arsenic, lead, chromium(VI), biuret, perchlorate, total chromium and phosphonates content in inorganic fertilizers.
For the mercury, cadmium, nickel, copper, zinc, arsenic, lead, perchlorate and total chromium content: This document is applicable to the fertilizing products blends where a blend is a mix of at least two of the following components: fertilizers, liming materials, soil improvers, growing media, inhibitors, plant biostimulants, and where the following category: inorganic fertilizers is the highest % in the blend by mass or volume, or in the case of liquid form by dry mass. If inorganic fertilizer is not the highest % in the blend, the European Standard for the highest % of the blend applies. In case a fertilizing product blend is composed of components in equal quantity, the user decides which standard to apply.
For the chromium(VI) and biuret content: This document is applicable to the fertilizing products blends where a blend is a mix of at least two of the following components: fertilizers, liming materials, soil improvers, growing media, inhibitors, plant biostimulants, and where organic matter is present in at least one of the products in the blend. In case a fertilizing product blend is composed only of inorganic products, the European Standard for inorganic fertilizers applies. Variations in analytical methods for fertilizing product blends can lead to differing results as some components or matrix interactions can affect the outcome. Validation procedures have shown that developed standard methods are robust and reliable across diverse product compositions, but possible interferences and unexpected results when analysing fertilizing product blends are possible.
An overview of the references to methods for the determination of the specific contaminants is given in Table 1.
NOTE 1   The determination of copper and zinc in inorganic fertilizers as micronutrients is covered by prEN 17754.
NOTE 2   The determination of copper in ammonium nitrate fertilizers of high nitrogen content is covered by CEN/TS 17751.

Anorganische Düngemittel - Bestimmung spezifischer Kontaminanten

Dieses Dokument legt Verweisungen auf Verfahren zur Bestimmung der folgenden Kontaminanten fest: Quecksilber, Cadmium, Nickel, Kupfer, Zink, Arsen, Blei, Chrom(VI), Biuret, Perchlorat sowie der Gesamtgehalt an Chrom und Phosphonaten in anorganischen Düngemitteln.
Hinsichtlich des Gehalts an Quecksilber, Cadmium, Nickel, Kupfer, Zink, Arsen, Blei, Perchlorat und des Gesamtgehalts an Chrom gilt: Dieses Dokument ist anwendbar auf Düngeproduktmischungen, bei denen eine Mischung aus mindestens zwei der folgenden Komponenten besteht: Düngemittel, Kalkdünger, Bodenverbesserungsmittel, Kultursubstrate, Hemmstoffe und Pflanzen-Biostimulanzien, und wenn die Kategorie „anorganische Düngemittel“ den höchsten Prozentsatz in der Mischung bezüglich Masse oder Volumen, oder im Falle von flüssigen Formen bezüglich Trockenmasse ausmacht. Wenn das anorganischen Düngemittel nicht den höchsten Prozentsatz in der Mischung ausmacht, gilt die Europäische Norm für den höchsten Prozentsatz der Mischung. Im Falle, dass die Düngeproduktmischung aus Komponenten gleicher Menge besteht, entscheidet der Anwender, welche Norm angewendet wird.
Hinsichtlich des Gehalts an Chrom(VI) und Biuret gilt: Dieses Dokument ist anwendbar auf Düngeproduktmischungen, bei denen eine Mischung aus mindestens zwei der folgenden Komponenten besteht: Düngemittel, Kalkdünger, Bodenverbesserungsmittel, Kultursubstrate, Hemmstoffe und Pflanzen-Biostimulanzien, und wenn in mindestens einem der Produkte der Produktmischung organische Stoffe vorhanden sind. Im Falle, dass die Düngeproduktmischung ausschließlich aus anorganischen Produkten besteht, ist die Norm für anorganische Düngemittel anwendbar. Variationen in analytischen Verfahren für Düngeproduktmischungen können zu unterschiedlichen Ergebnissen führen, da einige Komponenten oder Matrixwechselwirkungen das Ergebnis beeinflussen können. Validierungen haben gezeigt, dass die entwickelten Standardverfahren robust und zuverlässig über unterschiedliche Produktzusammensetzungen hinweg sind. Jedoch sind mögliche Interferenzen und unerwartete Ergebnisse bei der Analyse von Düngeproduktmischungen möglich.
Ein Überblick über die Verweisungen auf Verfahren zur Bestimmung der spezifischen Kontaminanten wird in Tabelle 1 gegeben.
ANMERKUNG 1   Die Bestimmung von Kupfer und Zink als Spurennährstoffe in anorganischen Düngemitteln wird in prEN 17754 behandelt.
ANMERKUNG 2   Die Bestimmung von Kupfer in Ammoniumnitratdüngemitteln mit hohem Stickstoffgehalt wird in CEN/TS 17751 behandelt.

Engrais inorganiques - Détermination des contaminants spécifiques

Le présent document spécifie les références des méthodes de détermination des contaminants suivants : la teneur en mercure, en cadmium, en nickel, en cuivre, en zinc, en arsenic, en plomb, en chrome(VI), en biuret, en perchlorate, en chrome total et en phosphonates dans les engrais inorganiques.
Pour la teneur en mercure, en cadmium, en nickel, en cuivre, en zinc, en arsenic, en plomb, en perchlorate et en chrome total : Le présent document est applicable aux mélanges de fertilisants constitués d’au moins deux des composants suivants : engrais, amendements minéraux basiques, amendements du sol, supports de culture, inhibiteurs, biostimulants des végétaux et dans lesquels la catégorie « engrais inorganiques » représente le pourcentage le plus élevé du mélange en masse ou en volume, ou dans le cas d’un liquide, en masse sèche. Si l’engrais inorganique ne représente pas le pourcentage le plus élevé du mélange, la Norme européenne relative au pourcentage le plus élevé du mélange s’applique. Dans le cas où le mélange de fertilisants est constitué de composants en quantités égales, l’utilisateur décide quelle norme appliquer.
Pour la teneur en chrome(VI) et en biuret : Le présent document est applicable aux mélanges de fertilisants constitués d’au moins deux des composants suivants : engrais, amendements basiques, amendements du sol, supports de culture, inhibiteurs, biostimulants des végétaux et dans lesquels la matière organique est présente dans au moins un des produits du mélange. Dans le cas où un mélange de fertilisants est constitué uniquement de produits inorganiques, la Norme européenne relative aux engrais inorganiques s’applique. Les variations dans les méthodes d’analyse des mélanges de fertilisants peuvent conduire à des résultats différents, car certaines interactions de composants ou de la matrice peuvent affecter le résultat. Les procédures de validation ont montré que les méthodes normalisées développées sont robustes et fiables pour diverses compositions de produits, mais que des interférences éventuelles et des résultats inattendus lors de l’analyse des mélanges de fertilisants sont possibles.
Un aperçu des références aux méthodes de détermination des contaminants spécifiques est donné dans le Tableau 1.
NOTE 1   Le dosage du cuivre et du zinc dans les engrais inorganiques en tant qu’oligo-éléments est couvert par le prEN 17754.
NOTE 2   Le dosage du cuivre dans les engrais à base de nitrate d’ammonium à forte teneur en azote est couvert par la CEN/TS 17751.

Anorganska gnojila - Določanje specifičnih onesnaževal

General Information

• Status: Not Published
• Publication Date: 28-Feb-2028
• ICS: 65.080 - Fertilizers
• Technical Committee: CEN/TC 260 - Fertilizers and liming materials
• Drafting Committee: CEN/TC 260/WG 7 - Chemical analysis
• Current Stage: 4020 - Submission to enquiry - Enquiry
• Start Date: 12-Feb-2026
• Due Date: 13-Oct-2026
• Completion Date: 12-Feb-2026
• Directive: Not Harmonized2019/1009 - Regulation (EU) 2019/1009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 June 2019 laying down rules on the making available on the market of EU fertilising products and amending Regulations (EC) No 1069/2009 and (EC) No 1107/2009 and repealing Regulation (EC) No 2003/2003 (Text with EEA relevance)
• Mandate: M/564 - Fertilising products in support of Regulation (EU) 2019/1009
• Mandate: M/564 AMD 1 - amending Implementing Decision C(2020) 612 as regards certain harmonised standards and standardisation deliverables, deadlines for their adoption and the duration of the validity of the standardisation request
• Mandate: M/564 AMD 2 - Commission Implementing decision amending Implementing Decision C(2020)612 as regards harmonised standards, the deadlines for the adoption of those standards and the duration of the validity of the standardisation request to the European Committee for Standardisation as regards the EU fertilising products in support of Regulation (EU) 2019/1009 of the European Parliament and of the Council
• Ref Project: oSIST prEN 17753:2026 - Inorganic fertilizers - Determination of specific contaminants

Relations

• Revises: CEN/TS 17753:2022 - Inorganic fertilizers - Determination of specific contaminants
• Effective Date: 03-Jul-2024

Overview

prEN 17753: Inorganic fertilizers – Determination of specific contaminants is a draft European Standard developed by CEN/TC 260. This standard specifies references to methods for determining the content of certain contaminants-comprising mercury, cadmium, nickel, copper, zinc, arsenic, lead, chromium(VI), biuret, perchlorate, total chromium, and phosphonates-in inorganic fertilizers and relevant fertilizer blends. The standard is designed to support conformity with the contaminant safety requirements outlined in Regulation (EU) 2019/1009 for EU fertilizing products, promoting both environmental safety and product quality.

Key Topics

1. Covered Contaminants

• Heavy metals: mercury, cadmium, nickel, copper, zinc, arsenic, lead, total chromium, chromium(VI)
• Organic/inorganic substances: biuret, perchlorate, phosphonates

2. Applicability to Fertilizer Blends

• Applies to blends containing at least two components (e.g., fertilizers, liming materials, soil improvers, growing media, inhibitors, plant biostimulants).
• If the inorganic fertilizer fraction is the largest part of the blend, prEN 17753 applies. If not, the standard for the most prevalent component is used.
• For chromium(VI) and biuret, the standard applies when any blend component contains organic matter.

3. Analytical Methods

• Specifies robust, referenced methods such as ICP-AES, atomic absorption spectrometry, photometry, ion chromatography, and HPLC, depending on the contaminant.
• Emphasizes that sample preparation and extraction methods must follow referenced standards to ensure accurate contaminant quantification.

4. Compliance and Market Access

• Supports manufacturers' compliance with EU regulations, specifically Regulation (EU) 2019/1009, relating to the market placement of fertilizers.
• Adherence ensures products meet essential safety and quality requirements, facilitating access to the EU market.

Applications

Fertilizer Manufacturers and Blenders

• Use the standard to test finished products and raw materials for specific contaminants, ensuring regulatory compliance.
• Apply referenced methods when developing new inorganic fertilizer blends or reformulating existing products to verify safety.

Testing Laboratories

• Reference the prescribed analytical methods for mercury, cadmium, and other contaminants in fertilizer quality assurance and external testing services.
• Validate the presence and concentration of regulated substances to avoid legal or commercial setbacks.

Regulatory Authorities and Inspectors

• Assess compliance of inorganic fertilizers and blends on the market through standardized testing protocols.
• Aid in the certification and approval process for market release.

Agricultural Sector

• Ensures the fertilizers applied in agriculture do not introduce hazardous substances, supporting sustainable farming and environmental protection.
• Contributes to the safe application of soil amendments and plant nutrients.

Related Standards

• prEN 17754: Determination of copper and zinc as micronutrients in inorganic fertilizers.
• CEN/TS 17751: Determination of copper in high-nitrogen ammonium nitrate fertilizers.
• EN 1482-1, EN 1482-2, EN 1482-3: Fertilizers, liming materials, and inhibitors-sampling and sample preparation.
• EN 16317, EN 16318, EN 16319, EN 16320: Methods for analyzing heavy metals and chromium(VI).
• EN 16962, EN 16963, EN 16964, EN 16965: Determination of micronutrients using various analytical techniques.
• EN 17246: Analysis of perchlorates.
• ISO 18643: Biuret content in urea-based fertilizers.

Practical Value

Complying with prEN 17753 minimizes the risk of environmental contamination and meets regulatory demands for product safety. The standard enables reliable, repeatable contaminant testing, builds trust with consumers and regulators, and streamlines access to the EU fertilizer market for manufacturers. As environmental and regulatory requirements grow more stringent, adoption of prEN 17753 and referenced EU standards is essential for ensuring product integrity and sustainability across the inorganic fertilizer industry.

Standards Content (Sample)

SLOVENSKI STANDARD
01-april-2026
Anorganska gnojila - Določanje specifičnih onesnaževal
Inorganic fertilizers - Determination of specific contaminants
Anorganische Düngemittel - Bestimmung spezifischer Kontaminanten
Engrais inorganiques - Détermination des contaminants spécifiques
Ta slovenski standard je istoveten z: prEN 17753
ICS:
65.080 Gnojila Fertilizers
2003-01.Slovenski inštitut za standardizacijo. Razmnoževanje celote ali delov tega standarda ni dovoljeno.

DRAFT
EUROPEAN STANDARD
NORME EUROPÉENNE
EUROPÄISCHE NORM
February 2026
ICS 65.080 Will supersede CEN/TS 17753:2022
English Version
Inorganic fertilizers - Determination of specific
contaminants
Engrais inorganiques - Détermination des Anorganische Düngemittel - Bestimmung spezifischer
contaminants spécifiques Kontaminanten
This draft European Standard is submitted to CEN members for enquiry. It has been drawn up by the Technical Committee
CEN/TC 260.
If this draft becomes a European Standard, CEN members are bound to comply with the CEN/CENELEC Internal Regulations
which stipulate the conditions for giving this European Standard the status of a national standard without any alteration.

This draft European Standard was established by CEN in three official versions (English, French, German). A version in any other
language made by translation under the responsibility of a CEN member into its own language and notified to the CEN-CENELEC
Management Centre has the same status as the official versions.

CEN members are the national standards bodies of Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia,
Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway,
Poland, Portugal, Republic of North Macedonia, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Türkiye and
United Kingdom.
Recipients of this draft are invited to submit, with their comments, notification of any relevant patent rights of which they are
aware and to provide supporting documentation.

Warning : This document is not a European Standard. It is distributed for review and comments. It is subject to change without
notice and shall not be referred to as a European Standard.

EUROPEAN COMMITTEE FOR STANDARDIZATION
COMITÉ EUROPÉEN DE NORMALISATION

EUROPÄISCHES KOMITEE FÜR NORMUNG

CEN-CENELEC Management Centre: Rue de la Science 23, B-1040 Brussels
© 2026 CEN All rights of exploitation in any form and by any means reserved Ref. No. prEN 17753:2026 E
worldwide for CEN national Members.

Contents Page
European foreword . 3
Introduction . 4
1 Scope . 5
2 Normative references . 5
3 Terms and definitions . 6
4 Sampling and sample preparation . 6
4.1 Sampling . 6
4.2 Sample preparation . 6
5 Determination of specific contaminants . 6
5.1 Mercury (Hg) . 6
5.2 Cadmium (Cd), nickel (Ni), arsenic (As) and lead (Pb) . 7
5.3 Copper (Cu) and zinc (Zn) . 7
5.4 Chromium(VI) (Cr(VI)) . 7
5.5 Biuret (C H N O ) . 7
2 5 3 2
5.6 Perchlorate (ClO -) . 8
5.7 Total chromium (Cr(total)) . 8
5.8 Phosphonates . 8
Annex ZA (informative) Relationship of this European Standard and the essential
requirements of Regulation (EU) 2019/1009 making available on the market of EU
fertilising products aimed to be covered . 9
Bibliography . 11

European foreword
This document (prEN 17753:2026) has been prepared by Technical Committee CEN/TC 260 “Fertilizers
and liming materials”, the secretariat of which is held by DIN.
This document is currently submitted to CEN Enquiry.
This document will supersede CEN/TS 17753:2022.
CEN/TS 17753:2022:
— the CEN Technical Specification has been adopted as a European Standard including the addition of
Annex ZA;
— Introduction updated;
— Scope (Clause 1) updated;
— Normative references (Clause 2) updated;
— Bibliography updated;
— determination of the phosphonates content (5.8) added.
This document has been prepared under a standardization request addressed to CEN by the European
Commission. The Standing Committee of the EFTA States subsequently approves these requests for its
Member States.
For the relationship with EU Legislation, see informative Annex ZA, which is an integral part of this
document.
Introduction
Regulation (EU) 2019/1009 [3] lays down the rules on the making available on the market of EU
fertilizing products and the specific safety and quality requirements for the defined product function
categories (PFCs). Inorganic fertilizers have been classified into PFC 1(C).
The specific safety and quality requirements in relation to specific contaminants (i.e. the mercury,
cadmium, nickel, copper, zinc, arsenic, lead, chromium VI, biuret, perchlorate and total chromium
content) are defined in this document as well as normative references of the test methods to be used in
order to measure the compliance with the related requirement in the Regulation (EU) 2019/1009 [3].
The definition of phosphonates is not clearly stated in Regulation (EU) 2019/1009 [3] and to avoid any
misunderstanding, the results are expressed as a content of phosphorus (P) bound in the form of free
water-soluble phosphonates (P-PO ).
1 Scope
This document specifies references to methods for the determination of the following contaminants:
mercury, cadmium, nickel, copper, zinc, arsenic, lead, chromium(VI), biuret, perchlorate, total chromium
and phosphonates content in inorganic fertilizers.
For the mercury, cadmium, nickel, copper, zinc, arsenic, lead, perchlorate and total chromium content:
This document is applicable to the fertilizing products blends where a blend is a mix of at least two of the
following components: fertilizers, liming materials, soil improvers, growing media, inhibitors, plant
biostimulants, and where the following category: inorganic fertilizers is the highest % in the blend by
mass or volume, or in the case of liquid form by dry mass. If inorganic fertilizer is not the highest % in the
blend, the European Standard for the highest % of the blend applies. In case a fertilizing product blend is
composed of components in equal quantity, the user decides which standard to apply.
For the chromium(VI) and biuret content: This document is applicable to the fertilizing products blends
where a blend is a mix of at least two of the following components: fertilizers, liming materials, soil
improvers, growing media, inhibitors, plant biostimulants, and where organic matter is present in at least
one of the products in the blend. In case a fertilizing product blend is composed only of inorganic
products, the European Standard for inorganic fertilizers applies. Variations in analytical methods for
fertilizing product blends can lead to differing results as some components or matrix interactions can
affect the outcome. Validation procedures have shown that developed standard methods are robust and
reliable across diverse product compositions, but possible interferences and unexpected results when
analysing fertilizing product blends are possible.
An overview of the references to methods for the determination of the specific contaminants is given in
Table 1.
NOTE 1 The determination of copper and zinc in inorganic fertilizers as micronutrients is covered by
prEN 17754.
NOTE 2 The determination of copper in ammonium nitrate fertilizers of high nitrogen content is covered by
CEN/TS 17751.
2 Normative references
The following documents are referred to in the text in such a way that some or all of their content
constitutes requirements of this document. For dated references, only the edition cited applies. For
undated references, the latest edition of the referenced document (including any amendments) applies.
EN 1482-2:2024, Fertilizers, liming materials and inhibitors — Sampling and sample preparation — Part
2: General sample preparation provisions
prEN 12944-1:2026, Fertilizers, liming materials and inhibitors — Vocabulary — Part 1: General terms
prEN 12944-2:2026, Fertilizers, liming materials and inhibitors — Vocabulary — Part 2: Terms relating to
fertilizers
EN 16317:2013+A1:2017, Fertilizers and liming materials — Determination of arsenic by inductively
coupled plasma-atomic emission spectrometry (ICP-AES) after aqua regia dissolution
EN 16318:2013+A1:2016, Fertilizers and liming materials — Determination of chromium(VI) by
photometry (method A) and by ion chromatography with spectrophotometric detection (method B)
...