🌍 𝐁𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐮𝐛𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐛𝐨𝐭𝐭𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐜𝐤: 𝐢𝐧𝐧𝐨𝐯𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐦𝐞𝐞𝐭𝐬 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲
A clear message from IPM Essen this year: 𝐩𝐞𝐚𝐭 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐯𝐢𝐫𝐠𝐢𝐧 𝐜𝐨𝐢𝐫 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐞 — from supply constraints, rising costs, and regulation. If the sector wants resilience, we need to rethink what plants grow in, not just how they grow.

𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐨𝐝 𝐨𝐮𝐭:
– 𝐑𝐞𝐬𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐜𝐞 𝐬𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐜𝐢𝐭𝐲 is accelerating interest in “farm-ready” alternatives
– 𝐂𝐢𝐫𝐜𝐮𝐥𝐚𝐫 𝐬𝐮𝐛𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐬 (e.g. recycled soft fruit coir) promise up to 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐲 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐥𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫 𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐛𝐨𝐧 𝐟𝐨𝐨𝐭𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐬
– 𝐏𝐞𝐫𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐫𝐮𝐥𝐞𝐬: porosity, pH stability, drainage, and compatibility with automated systems are non-negotiable

At the same time, Growing Media Europe AISBL (𝐆𝐌𝐄) offered an important counterbalance:  https://www.youtube.com/shorts/dlWZBd_g_EU

 – Peat remains the 𝐦𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐧𝐭 in commercial systems – Higher shares of alternatives can increase 𝐜𝐫𝐨𝐩 𝐟𝐚𝐢𝐥𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐤, especially in container horticulture – Sustainable ≠ peat-free: 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐛𝐥𝐲 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐞𝐝 𝐩𝐞𝐚𝐭 (𝐑𝐏𝐏) may still play a role – Competition for wood fibre and bark with energy & construction sectors is a 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐥 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐭

𝐅𝐓𝐒 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞:
This is not a binary debate. The challenge is 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧, 𝐭𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠, and 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐜𝐤𝐬 — ensuring circular solutions meet the agronomic, economic, and operational needs of professional growers.