What it means
کود شیمیایی (kud-e shimiyâyi) means chemical fertilizer, a manufactured product added to soil to supply nutrients that boost crop growth. The phrase is a compound of two words: کود (kud), the Persian word for fertilizer or manure, and شیمیایی (shimiyâyi), an adjective meaning chemical, derived from شیمی (shimi) which was borrowed into Persian from French chimie. Because of this loanword element the full phrase has mixed origins. The opposite is کود آلی (kud-e âli), meaning organic fertilizer or compost. کود شیمیایی is the term used in everyday speech, agriculture news, and on product labels across Iran.
How to use it
- کشاورزها زیادی کود شیمیایی میریزن. (keshâvarzâ ziyâdi kud-e shimiyâyi mirizand.) “Farmers use too much chemical fertilizer.”
- کود شیمیایی خاک رو خراب میکنه اگه زیاد بزنیش. (kud-e shimiyâyi khâk ro kharâb mikone age ziyâd bezaniesh.) “Chemical fertilizer degrades the soil if you apply too much.”
- امسال به جای کود شیمیایی از کود آلی استفاده کردیم. (emsâl be jâye kud-e shimiyâyi az kud-e âli estefâde kardim.) “This year we used organic fertilizer instead of chemical fertilizer.”
- قیمت کود شیمیایی خیلی بالا رفته. (qeymat-e kud-e shimiyâyi kheyli bâlâ rafte.) “The price of chemical fertilizer has gone up a lot.”
Cultural note
Chemical fertilizers became widespread in Iranian agriculture during the Green Revolution era of the 1960s and 1970s, dramatically increasing wheat and rice yields. The government has historically subsidized کود شیمیایی to keep food prices stable, making it the dominant fertilizer in Iranian farming. In recent years environmentalists and agricultural researchers in Iran have raised alarms about soil degradation and water contamination linked to excessive chemical fertilizer use, and there is a growing push toward کود آلی and integrated soil management as more sustainable alternatives.