The arise Media Taskforce , an industry group consisting of the Garden Centre Association ( GCA ) , acquire Media Association ( GMA ) , National Farmers Union ( NFU ) , and Responsible Sourcing Scheme ( RSS ) and chaired by the Horticultural Trades Association ( HTA ) , has submitted its response to the politics ’s consultation on the use of peat in gardening , putting forward grounds that argue against legislating and calls for the government to entrust to taking action that will enable access to alternatives .
Views from across the industry , admit growers , manufacturers , and retailer , have shaped what stand as horticulture ’s response to a Defra marriage offer to ban peat from retail sale by 2024 .
Acknowledgment of the need to transition to peat - devoid as part of a wide allegiance to improving the sustainability of gardening is at the heart of the response , which outlines opportunity for government and industry to join forces and highlights the unintended consequences a forbidding would have on an industry that has well - document positive effect on society – particularly people ’s mental wellness and wellbeing – is a primal enabler in government ’s green ambitiousness and contributes £ 29bn a year to GDP and generates £ 6.3bn in tax revenues .
DecreasingWith modish name showing peat - role continuing to decrease across the board * , the project force says that primary statute law is not necessary and instead the governance should devote to work with manufacture to unlock policy barrier to hurry up access to materials such as wood , coir and dark-green wasteland .
Chairman of the HTA and Chair of the Growing Media Taskforce , James Barnes , said :
“ Horticulture is a unripe manufacture at its core , providing the Tree and plants that will enable governing to progress towards last zero and achieve the goals of its 25 - year environs design . There is no interrogative that peat role should be phased out , however , without access to the necessary quantities of option , it is not dramatic to predict huge harm to UK agriculturalist and retail merchant and a bang - on effect for the millions of masses who enjoy garden . ”
The response also raises the concerns of the edible gardening sector , with particular respect to the challenges that mushroom cloud producer and the extension of some brassicas and leafy salad crop facial expression . Both rely intemperately on peat , as its benefit are not easily replicate .
“ agriculturalist are invest in finding worthy alternatives but more time and collaboration with government activity is call for ” , Barnes continued . “ As a sphere pitch towards bring home the bacon the state with healthy , affordable British food for thought , we are asking governing to work with us until such sentence a commercial material redeem the biological benefit of peat , without unintentionally impacting our domesticated nutrient security measures .
“ Our response to this interview sets out how we can see a manageable conversion to peat - gratuitous develop media and demonstrate that collaboration , not legislation , is the key to finding solutions to the complex challenges of the issue .
“ Defra ’s proposals interpret further unexampled regulatory insurance policy from the Government that will touch on our industry despite the Government ’s principles outlined to do the opposite in their recent publishing ‘ The Benefits of Brexit ’ * * .
“ The industry is already ferment incredibly severely to go on progress through education , by way of the Responsible Sourcing Scheme for example , and ware development . Government action require to complement this - by way of financial support for more research and exploitation and grant for Modern engineering and take away insurance barriers to the option we know are out there . ”
The taskforce has perpetrate to terminate the sector ’s habit of peat , pledging to off it from the retail market as early as 2025 and no afterwards than the closing 2028 .
