This report respond to the request from the Secretary of State for Environment , Food and Rural Affairs that the Office for the Internal Market ( OIM ) see the possible issue on the UK internal grocery of the Department for Environment , Food and Rural Affairs ( DEFRA ) proposed forbidding in England on the sale of horticultural peat to retail consumers by 2024 and to professional growers by 2028 severally . That request , made under s.34 of the UK Internal Market Act 2020 , was assume by the OIM on 14 April 2025 .
The analysis has been acquit in accordance with role under the UK Internal Market Act 2020 . It analyse the effects on the internal market of the propose regulation and is principally implicated with its economical effects . Attention is focused on the 2024 retail ban .
They assemble information from a variety of reservoir , including response to DEFRA ’s audience on the purport ordinance , audience with industry player and other concerned party , information postulation , and write research . They also commissioned a survey of consumer attitudes and behaviour . They spoke to industriousness player , including farm mass medium manufacturers and retailers , professional growers , retail consumers , and other interested parties such as the Devolved Administrations , local authority planning officers , and environmental charity .
The supplying chain for peat - containing grow medium sold to retail customers consist peat cartridge extractor , manufacturers ( most of whom also set about some peat descent activities ) , and retailer . Most ( over two - thirds ) of growing mass medium sold in the UK are sell through retailers . The difference is sold to professional cultivator , a grouping that includes farmers and byplay that grow ornamental works .
The use of peat in horticulture has hang over the last decade , driven by greater use of peat - free growing medium and reduction in the proportion of peat used in peat - containing growing media . This trend has accelerated in the last three years , reflect modify environmental awareness amongst consumers , retailers ’ desire to receive their Environmental , Social , and Governance commitments , and manufacturers ’ anticipation of government action mechanism to ban peat economic consumption . Despite these developments , they anticipate that peat will proceed to be used in England for the next few years without the proposed Bachelor of Arts in Nursing .
To understand the likely core on the interior marketplace of the declare oneself ban , they first looked at how the market for peat - based growing culture medium mathematical product and their peat - free alternatives might develop following the ban . Central to this analysis is a consideration of the role play by the Market Access Principles . These principle would , under certain circumstances , permit peat - containing growing medium produced in Scotland , Wales , or Northern Ireland to be sold in England even after the Bachelor of Arts in Nursing has taken effect . The Market Access Principles would not permit peat - moderate growing medium produce in England to be sold in England since the propose ban on cut-rate sale would apply .
They conclude that consumer demand for peat - containing growing culture medium specifically is pocket-size but not impertinent . The consumer survey break that no more than one in 10 consumers have a strong motivation to buy peat - containing farm medium . A much larger proportionality ( at least 4 in 10 ) are motivated to grease one’s palms peat - destitute growing media . At least 3 in 10 are unconcerned about what their growing media contains and are more potential to be influenced by the toll of growing media . These finding are consistent with research and discussion they had with industriousness player .
In line with these consumer preferences , many retail merchant have made dedication to phase out peat - containing spring up medium . They forecast that approximately 60 % of all growing metier sell through the retail channel is sold by retailers who have made a public dedication to only stock peat - free growing medium by the goal of 2024 or originally . These commitments shorten the appetence of retail merchant to proceed offer peat - containing growing media . In addition , larger retail merchant with UK - wide operations tend to stockpile a single growing medium oblation for the whole UK . This would mean that peat - gratis growing medium that complies with the proposed ban in England would also become the received crack from these retailers in the rest of the UK even if the sales event of peat - containing growing media were not censor there .
Retailer stocking decisions will also be affected by the availableness of peat - free growing media more in general . Shortages of peat - free input may result in a shortage of peat - free growing media or get gain in price and/or reduction in quality . This may disproportionately move smaller retailers . In such lot , retailers may rely on the Market Access Principles to obtain peat - contain growing medium , particularly if they have not made public commitments to check selling peat . The incentive to do so will be in particular secure for retail merchant such as garden centre , where customers may not buy other products if they are not also able to buy growing media .
On the production side , many manufacturer have been steadily reducing their utilization of peat in their arise media . All the manufacturers they spoke to who presently produce peat - containing growing media had invested in raw equipment , depot , or litigate to enable them to produce peat - free maturate media . They indicated that the proposed ban on retail sales agreement of peat was likely to speed up this trend .
Many of the peat - free alternatives used by manufacturers are by - products of other industries and so are affected by the levels of activeness in the underlying diligence . In accession , the horticultural manufacture in the UK competes with other industries globally , such as biomass vigor product , for access to these input signal . Some peat - barren input for growing media , such as coir , are sourced internationally and can be affected by planetary factor such as transportation rates . Notwithstanding these challenges , UK manufacturers have been successful in enlarge the usance of peat - destitute inputs across their businesses , with the use of peat - liberal inputs almost repeat between 2011 and 2021 . A further speedy expansion would be needed to replace current peat use in retail develop media by the death of 2024 .
Although manufacturers have been successful in removing a considerable proportion of peat from their production of growing media , many of the manufacturing business they spoke to bring up business organisation about a likely shortage of the inputs required to make peat - free growing media if peat is completely take away from the sphere . If there were supply shortages of peat - free growing media in worldwide , or a lack of appropriate peat - free input for specific ware ranges , retail merchant in England might have an incentive to seek to bank on the Market Access Principles to receive and sell peat - check grow medium .
Even if sufficient volumes of peat - free get media are usable , the increase requirement for the inputs command is likely to increase their price , also providing an incentive for retailers in England to bank on the Market Access Principles to obtain and sell peat - containing acquire media . Differences in production costs between peat - containing and peat - gratuitous growing media have previously slowed the changeover away from peat , as peat has historically been tinny than the inputs required for peat - free alternatives . More recently , the price of peat has rise , narrowing this price differential . If manufacturer skin to obtain input for peat - free grow medium and their toll of production rise , this derived function could increase again , supply incentive to devolve to the yield of peat - containing rise mass medium where this is permit .
They study that the professional sector is unlikely to be a rootage of peat - free stimulus for the retail sector . Although professional growers eat up a strong amount of peat - loose stimulation in their develop medium , even if the terms of peat - gratis comment increase , they would be improbable to deputize for growing media with a higher peat content . Professional growers have sinewy commercial reasons to make changes to the develop medium they use incrementally and cautiously and will , in any event , need to start to prepare for the ban on peat - containing grow medium in the professional sphere in 2028 .
The power of producer to provide peat - containing produce media will count on where they invent it – production must take place in one of Scotland , Wales , or Northern Ireland to be sold lawfully in England after the proscription takes effect . There is no output of peat - containing growing metier in Wales . Scotland is unlikely to be a significant source of peat - containing increasing mass medium for the retail sector following the retail ban in England , as most Scottish production is for the professional market .
output in Northern Ireland cover several manufacturing business , including some humble businesses , and is more likely to be a source of peat - incorporate growing media into the respite of the UK . However , Northern Ireland may not be a toll - in force localisation from which to supply all parts of England due to transport costs .
In the recollective terminal figure , manufacturers could invest in Modern plant in Scotland , Wales , and Northern Ireland that would enable them to rely on the Market Access Principles to supply peat - containing growing media to England . However , there are doubt about the incentives that manufacturers would have to invest longsighted - terminal figure in the production of peat - containing growing media given that the Scottish Government has give to phase out the employment of peat in gardening and the Welsh Government has also announced that it will terminate the retail sales agreement of peat in horticulture . The draught Northern Ireland peatland scheme contains a proposal to carry on a review and publish a primal upshot newspaper on peat descent and the habit of peat and peat ware by 2023 and take forward any recommendations made .
Overall , they conclude that there will be define incentives for manufacturers and retailers to sell peat - containing growing medium in England once the prohibition takes effect . However , that finding depends on the handiness of the input ask to make peat - free growing media . While they call up large - scurf shortages are unlikely , some shortages may arise , and the more terrible and more endure the shortage , the more likely it is that manufacturers and retail merchant will rick to peat - containing arise sensitive to bridge the disruption , should peat - free maturate media become too dearly-won or be of humble quality .
On Libra the Scales , they , therefore , conclude that while there will be some change to the pattern of trade in peat - containing grow media across the UK that may be significant to private businesses , these are likely to be modest in the context of the overall market for growing mass medium . This is because most , if not all , manufacturers presently develop peat - containing growing media are also able to invent peat - liberal develop medium , and they expect to trade in peat - curb grow media to be replaced by trade in peat - destitute growing media . For the same reason , they also do not expect there to be a pregnant impact on wide-eyed competition within the growing medium market .
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