EIP-AGRI Focus Group on Circular horticulture: Final report

Protected horticulture can ensure high quality production and contribute to global food security. It also provides many opportunities for a more ‘circular’ production to use resources more efficiently. This is achieved by both simple and advanced techniques for farm, crop management, precise application of resources (water, fertilisers, energy), so that environmental and climate impact can be controlled and the use of resources optimised. The Focus Group on "Circular Horticulture – focus on how to increase circularity in protected horticulture" was launched by the European Commission in 2017 as part of the EIP-AGRI. Its aim was to look at examples of good practice of circularity in protected horticulture and how these could be transferred to other situations to benefit the wider sector. It also looked at success and fail factors for circular approaches in horticulture, identified knowledge gaps and possible future research needs with practical impact. This final report gives more details on the findings of the Focus Group.