PAPILLONS & MINAGRIS : two European research projects

AUTHOR : DRA. Esperanza HUERTA LWANGA, Research Associate, Soil Physics and Land Management, Wageningen University & Julie INGRAM, Professor of Innovation for Sustainable Agriculture, University of Gloucestershire & Szabolcs ZÖLDRÉTI, Project manager, Farm Europe & Luca NIZZETTO, Senior Research Scientist, PhD, Norwegian Institute for Water Research (NIVA)

PAPILLONS & MINAGRIS are research projects, both supported by the European Commission within the EU Horizon 2020 program.

Mulching films, bale nets, silage tubes, nursery pot trays, and polymer-coated fertilisers. These are just example of some important applications in which the plastic industry provides key benefits to contemporary agriculture, in Europe and beyond. Agricultural plastics have been touted as means to potentially boost crop yields and extend the shelf life of seeds, feeds and harvests, while positively addressing a number of environmental issues such as water scarcity, reduced use of fertilisers and herbicides, expansion of farmers’ access to market, and also adaptation to climate change.

European agriculture has pioneered innovation in the use of plastics in production systems, but agricultural plastics are gaining ground also in developing countries where agriculture is an important economic sector still employing the majority of the workforce. At a time of ecological crisis and climate change, any production system and commodity that enhances harvest reliability and yield deserves attention and consideration. This is essential in the context of food safety and for the endeavour to feed an increasing number of people using less soil and fewer resources.

Agricultural plastics : growth in use and pollution prevention

Production systems that rely heavily on plastics to control the growth conditions of crops are termed plasticulture. Examples are: protected cultivation systems using plastic films as mulching, greenhouses or tunnels, plastic irrigation systems, etc. With a projected 50% increase in the sector over the next decade, plasticulture is gaining importance, including in developing countries where traditional agriculture is increasingly replaced by mechanised farming. This projected increase may result in a new and burgeoning conundrum in the struggle to curb plastic pollution and protect natural and farming ecosystems.