Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department is taking steps to help support the professional horticulture sector to develop responsibly-sourced alternatives to peat that can be produced at volume and which maintain the quality of the produce.

We have supported, and continue to support, a number of research projects looking at alternatives to peat in growing media. Following our recent announcement on the detail of our proposed time-limited exemptions for professional use, we will be taking further soundings from the horticulture sector regarding technical barriers to transitioning away from the use of peat and the type of research and development projects which could benefit from Government support.