The Horticultural Development Company (HDC) and DEFRA have jointly launched a series of £1 million proposals to support the horticulture industry as it moves towards an increased use of responsibly sourced growing media.
The proposals, which extend over a five-year period, recommend an industry-funded programme of work that delivers targeted R&D and demonstration trials to support growers through any future transitions.
Neil Bragg, chairman of HDC, explained: “This project will make a real difference to the industry uptake of alternative growing media, by providing the necessary research, technical knowledge and commercial experience to allow growers to make practical and informed decisions about the substrates available to growers for use in the future.
'The project focus is on balancing the needs of industry and environment to optimise substrate performance while using a range of available and proven materials.”
The five-year programme will cover all horticultural sectors where growing media is used, including vegetable and salad propagation and the production of soft fruit, top fruit and ornamentals.
The plans of the programme include looking into the impact of using media on production and across the supply chain, working alongside growers and retailers to determine the best type of commercial use, and to communicate any outcomes to the industry through live demonstrations and technical events.
DEFRA will match fund monies up to the value of £100,000 per project year for the life of the project and HDC will input £30,000 per project year. The remaining contribution to maximise the level of match funding will be made up of direct monetary contributions and ‘in-kind’ contributions from industry associations and businesses.
The deadline for proposals is 30 September 2013 and the project is expected to commence on 1 January 2014, running until 31 December 2018.
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