Our collaborative project will develop a method for producing Sphagnum moss at scale for commercial processing into sustainable growing media, with a particular focus on producing quality sterile growing media for vegetable seedlings, hydroponics and vertical farming. Our growing media will enable the horticultural sector to achieve the Defra target of eliminating peat-based composts by 2030, and could also replace rockwool. We believe this is a disruptive, and ambitious idea leading to a new products and service. Micropropagation Services are the only supplier of sustainable micropropagated Sphagnum, which is significantly ahead of others in the field. With the collaboration of industry partners Melcourt Industries and FreshGro, with RTO Centre for Crop Health and Protection, we are well placed to engage with end users throughout this project to ensure rapid commercialisation.

Commercial extraction of peat as a growing media is unsustainable and mandated by DEFRA to cease by 2030\. Exploited peatlands are a net source of carbon dioxide emissions through oxidation of the unsaturated peat layer, equating to between 18.5 to 23 MtCO2e/year in the UK, equivalent to 4% of annual UK CO2 emissions. Peat remains in high demand as alternatives, meeting commercial horticultural performance, are unavailable at scale. MPS have developed and patented a world-first in-vitro production system to produce BeadaGel (trademark) for propagating and seeding Sphagnum at scale for commercial scale farming to harvest and process as a peat alternative growing media product - BeadaGro (trademark). The only alternative method to seed Sphagnum is to translocate Sphagnum plants which is damaging for fragile ecosystems, many of which are legally protected and unsustainable at large scale. The aim of this collaborative project, with farmers and commercial growing nurseries, is to develop and demonstrate all aspects of commercial viability for Sphagnum Farming. The project includes developing plant clones to maximise growth and size for yield optimisation, as well as biological control methods to prevent disease and weed infestation. Machinery and protocols will be developed and trialled for large scale field seeding, harvesting and crop processing. Horticultural growing trials will demonstrate the effectiveness of the harvested sphagnum as a peat alternative growing media. Sphagnum farming also offer an opportunity to restore carbon balance, absorbing carbon dioxide through photosynthesis, during the trials Manchester Metropolitan University will monitor carbon dioxide capture.

This project seeks to establish a method for growing Sphagnum moss on a large scale to provide a sustainable alternative to peat in horticulture. Natural peat is expected to run out within 2 decades, and harvesting is causing great harm to the environment. Sphagnum grown on a commercial scale offers an fast, effective and sustainable solution to this market need for horticultural growing media because peat is merely old preserved Sphagnum. This is an innovative approach, as Sphagnum is difficult to propagate, and is relatively slow growing. However, our propagation methods have shown that we can mass-cultivate successfully and we now wish to determine optimum Sphagnum strains and growing conditions to create a much larger scale product which can be used to cultivate a crop at field scale and generate a cash crop for landowners/farmers in the form of a growing medium to replace peat whilst restoring wetland and peat-forming conditions.

Harvesting and subsequent degradation of peat bogs is a growing and controversial problem, with this limited resource having a finite lifespan, meaning natural peat sources are running out. DEFRA are currently working to completely phase out the use of peat based products in UK Horticulture by 2030. Existing natural peat bogs are harvested for use in horticulture as a growing medium, bio-fuels and other niche markets. Peat is widely recognised as providing key ecosystem services that are important for human well-being. It underpins habitats and landscapes important for biodiversity, moderation of groundwater flow and quality, climate regulation, provision of food, cultural heritage and recreation (Bonn et al., 2010). Not only does this cause problems of supply in horticulture, but degradation of peat bogs is having a severe environmental impact with release of carbon contributing significantly to global warning. It has been shown that fresh sphagnum moss, which creates peat bogs, is a viable alternative to peat as it has similar properties and could be developed to offer a sustainable growing medium reproducible on a significant scale. Micropropagation Services Ltd (MPS) have researched a unique technique for the micro-propagation of sphagnum which has the potential to grow sphagnum on a commercial scale, giving a renewable resource to enable the repatriation of peat bogs, and the growth of a profitable cash crop on land which is currently of limited commercial use.

It is not possible currently to propagate and grow sphagnum in large quantities, which has meant that until now the market for sphagnum has been niche (model railways, hanging baskets, orchids, dried flowers etc). Micropropagation Services Ltd (MPS) have researched a unique technique for the micro-propagation of sphagnum which offers the potential to grow sphagnum on a commercial scale. This application is to carry out a proof of market study to determine whether there would be market for large commercial seed stock carpets, and understand the IP landscape. Patent protection is crucial for this application and must be carefully considered. We have to balance gaining patent protection with maintaining trade secrets, and require professional help through the patent study to ensure we adopt the best strategy.

The project main aim is to provide a sustainable solution to the inherent problems of the greenhouse protected cropping industry through proposing a low-cost energy saving and climate control system. The project presents an innovative integrated approach to enhance the energetic performance of greenhouses and improve the yield of various protected crops through employing a seasonal underground thermal energy store with an innovative vacuum insulation panels in addition to utilizing heat insulation solar glass as the greenhouse glazing, natural ventilation windcatchers and innovative LED lights. The proposed solution enhances the glasshouse indoor conditions, improves the productivity and reduces the reliance on conventional fuels to provide energy needs and thus reducing the carbon emissions and the high running costs. Successful project implementation will benefit the whole community including the protected cropping growers and industry, the customers and the UK economy.

Metavesse is a project which investigated the production of plant cell secondary metabolites derived from two specially selected plant cell lines. The cell lines were selected from amongst Evesse Apple vaieties based on their projected yield of (-)-epicatechin monomers and specific procyanidin oligomers. These cell lines are intended for use in cosmetics and cosmaceuticals. The first cell line was propagated to produce a clean and reproducible source of high levels of (-)-epciatechin and the second was propagated to produce specially identified molecules which had previously been shown to provide "surface" vasodilation and anti-cancer properties. The cell lines were used to produce standardised products which have been successfully characerised in terms of their anti-oxidant, cell necrosis and cell protection characteristics.