Japanese conglomerate Suntory Holdings is carving out a potential market for a horticultural soil material made from upcycled manufacturing residues that will act as a peat moss alternative.
The product, called Teamoss, has been developed by primarily using green tea leaves from Suntory Beverage & Food plants. Through its Suntory Flowers arm, the plan is to begin production and sales on a commercial basis in Japan next year – with work now under way to create a mass production structure and conduct cultivation trials across a wider range of flower and vegetable seedlings.
According to the group, it will consider the use of other manufacturing residues generated across its supply chain, beyond used green tea leaves.
Why does this matter? Peat moss is a regular part of modern gardening, but environmental concerns are becoming a growing problem for sustainable use of the material because it releases stored carbon dioxide, degrades fragile wetland ecosystems, and is increasingly being restricted by regulation – particularly in Europe.
Daigo Suginobu, president of Suntory Flowers, said: “Through the creation of new technologies, we will continue to take on the challenge of addressing environmental issues and promote initiatives that contribute to sustainability.”
Suntory said it has already been recycling 100% of its manufacturing residues as animal feed and fertilisers, and continues to look for new ways to recycle its production residue.
Teamoss combines the would-be-waste green tea leaves with supplementary materials such as wood chips. During its pilot tests, the new horticultural soil material successfully delivered functionality comparable to peat moss, according to Suntory.
Surfinia seedlings were grown with conventional peat moss and Teamoss, as part of the experiments, which are displayed in the accompanying image.
As well as the environmental benefits of non-peat use, the use of manufacturing residues is expected to be a cost-effective alternative to what already exists on the market.
Read more about Suntory on Green Retail World
[image credit: Suntory Holdings and Suntory Flowers]
