peat A clear message
Bord na Monahas recently announced its name change to The Greener Gardening Companyin the UK. The company’s Steve Harper, UK’s head of commercial and marketing, outlines to Garden Centre Updatethe consequences of the name change, and provides an update on how the peat vs peat-free debate is playing out for retailers
Steve Harper, head of commercial and marketing for The Greener Gardening Company, said: “Our name change to The Greener Gardening Company allows us to offer a clear, easy-to-spot brand to UK consumers. Whilst they will be seeing a different logo on the shelves, they can still expect the same quality and same service they have come to expect from us as an industry leading brand.” The name change does not affect the current Bord Na Mona Horticulture business in Ireland or UK based trade customers that trade with Bord Na Mona Horticulture in Ireland.
Peat-free
As well as the name change, The Greener Gardening Company is playing a prominent role in the ‘peat vs peat-free’ debate – which has been long running since the mid-1980s. The whole debate is rather topical, since its arguably hindered the governments fight towards zero emissions.
For over three decades, peat-based potting composts have been used to raise and grow- on plants. Due to the on-going concerns about the immense damage done to the environment, gardeners are now reaching for peat-free or reduced-peat products as an alternative. Bord Na Móna has been one of the pioneers of this movement.
However, Bord Na Móna’s Brown to Green strategy has spearheaded the company’s intent to support the national climate and energy policy. The strategy’s aim is to speed up the development of renewable energy assets, as well as accelerating investment in higher-value recycling and resource recovery business. Harper is tasked with ensuring Bord Na
B
ord na Mona, the growing media company, has announced that the UK retail arm of the business will
change its name to The Greener Gardening Company, from 1 February 2020. The name change encapsulates all retail
customers that trade with Bord na Mona Horticulture, Bord na Mona UK and White Moss Horticulture. The company continues to be a wholly owned subsidiary of Bord na Mona Ireland.
Bord na Mona, The Greener Gardening Company, offers peat-reduced and peat-free growing media, soil improvers, barks and
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fertilisers, primarily through garden centres nationally. It is also the largest own brand supplier of growing media and barks in the UK and Ireland. It is part of Bord na Móna plc, which specialises in renewable energy, horticulture, resource recovery and eco-fuels. The horticulture business is focused on the manufacturing, marketing and sales of growing media and other horticultural products to UK and Irish retail markets. It also supplies professional markets primarily in the UK, Ireland and Europe, where it provides products to meet customer needs. The business exports growing media products to over 30 countries.
Móna can stay ahead of the ‘peat vs peat-free’. He said: “The UK government has issued a number
of targets over the years, such as the aim for all soil improvers and growing media to be 50 per cent peat-free by 2005 and 90 per cent peat-free by 2010, however both targets were missed. This was followed up by the 2011 White Paper ‘The Natural Choice: securing the value of nature’, which stated that the government will commit to reducing peat use to zero by 2030 and critically end its use by consumers in 2020. So needless to say, the debate – or the challenge – continues.”
GCU January/February 2020
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