Smarter use of plastics promotes circular agriculture and horticulture

Plastics play a crucial role in modern agriculture and horticulture. From container bags and films to flower netting and packaging, they increase yields, improve hygiene and enable efficient cultivation. At the same time, these applications pose major challenges. Many plastics come into direct contact with plants, soil or water, making reuse and recycling difficult. Furthermore, social and political pressure is increasing to make the use of plastics more sustainable and to prevent pollution.

The WUR project 'Circular use of plastics in agriculture and horticulture' therefore focused on one key question: how can the use of plastics in agriculture and horticulture be made as circular as possible, without compromising functionality and crop security?

The project combined fundamental research with real-world applications. In collaboration with seven companies, WUR worked on practice-based cases, developing and testing environmentally sustainable alternatives to existing plastic products under real crop cultivation conditions. The WUR experts also examined different end-of-life scenarios, such as mechanical recycling, industrial composting and biodegradation in the soil.

This led to tangible results, including compostable growbags and biodegradable flower netting. In practice, these products were found to perform comparably to conventional plastics, while being significantly more environmentally sustainable at the end of their useful life.

Besides product development, the project focused on key sector-wide problems. An important issue, for example, was whether plant viruses can survive during recycling processes. This is a widespread concern among growers, because reusing contaminated materials can pose risks to crop safety.

WUR research showed that some viruses can indeed survive standard recycling temperatures. These insights are essential for developing safe and economically viable recycling strategies, and help the industry make realistic choices based on facts rather than assumptions.

To make it possible to directly apply the acquired knowledge, the researchers also developed practical tools. For example, a decision tree was created to help growers choose the right type of plastic, tailored to application, useful life and expected end-of-life route. In addition, WUR clearly mapped legislation and regulations, certification and sustainability frameworks.

This combination of technological innovation, scientific evidence and practical tools enables companies and growers to make informed, future-proof choices.

The success of the project can be attributed to the intensive collaboration between Wageningen University & Research, companies in the sector and other knowledge institutions. During the process, WUR contributed its multidisciplinary expertise relating to sustainable plastic technology, recycling, materials development, systems analysis, (greenhouse) horticulture, cultivation systems and plant viruses. Together, these parties worked on solutions that are not only technically feasible, but also economically and practically viable for the industry.