Opportunities and challenges of the new EU Fertilising Products Regulation for soil improvers and growing media
With the joined policy session of the European Compost Network (ECN) and Growing Media Europe (GME) in the afternoon of the Industry & Policy Day at GrowingMedia2021 an exchange between the European Commission and manufacturers of growing media and soil improvers took place. Jérémy Pinte, Policy officer at the General-Directorate for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepdreneurship and SMEs of the European Commission introduced the new EU Fertilising Products Regulation focussing on the requirements for growing media and soil improvers for being placed as CE marked products on the European market. Nele Ameloot, representing Growing Media Europe, demonstrated how growing media are produced, and she stressed that there are challenges for the manufacturers for placing their tailor-made products as CE marked products on the European market. These challenges were as well taken up by Irmgard Leifert, representing Reterra Service GmbH. Her company sells more than 1,5 million cubic meters of quality assured compost-based products on the German market for agricultural and horticultural purposes today. Finally, Stefanie Siebert, respresenting ECN and Vlaco, reported about the challenges of existing quality assurance organisations with the conformity assessment procedures under the EU Fertilising Products Regulation.
Finally the session was closed with a lively debate moderated by Cecilia Luetgebrune from Growing Media Europe.
The recording of the Industry & Policy Day can be watched on youtube here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oAGm6Xm4wR0
The ECN & GME policy session starts at 5'13.
All presentations of the ECN & GME policy session can be accessed here: