The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has published two action plans, both announcing changes likely to have a significant impact on the industry over the next decade.
The launch of the England Peat Action Plan includes provisions to ban the sales of peat compost to gardeners from 2024, and reinforced its aims – first highlighted in the 25 Year Environmental Plan – of ensuring the professional horticultural sector is peat-free by 2030.
Although the industry has made progress in reductions of peat use over recent years, this has fallen below voluntary targets, with the result the government will formally consult on a range of potential legislative measures in 2021.
The growing media task force, an industry group consisting of Garden Centre Association (GCA), National Farmers Union (NFU), Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), Growing Media Association(GMA) and Responsible Sourcing Scheme (RSS) and coordinated by the Horticultural Trades Association (HTA) have committed to end the sectors’ use of peat inside the existing target date of 2030, but have advised they are dependent on government support.
For more information:
British Association of Landscape Industries
www.bali.org.uk