Growers Becoming More Sustainable but Most Think Climate Change is Beyond Control

Growers Becoming More Sustainable but Most Think Climate Change is Beyond ControlGreenhouse Grower‘s 2017 State of the Industry Survey revealed that growers of different sizes vary in their production of organic crops and use of biocontrols. Overall, 63% of growers said they currently use biocontrols in production. While all of the large growers who took our survey said they use biocontrols, the medium and small growers actually reported using more different types of biocontrols than their larger counterparts.

For the first time, Greenhouse Grower‘s State of the Industry Survey asked growers about organic production, and 19% said they grow organic crops. For the majority (56%), organic makes up less than 10% of their production, but 20% said they planned to expand organic production in the coming years.Growers Becoming More Sustainable but Most Think Climate Change is Beyond Control

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We also asked growers what they thought of growing GMO crops. Fifty-seven percent were in favor of it, if it solved a production problem or would help the consumer.

To gauge where we are in our environmental beliefs, we asked growers if they think we, as humans, can control climate change. The greenhouse industry is generally considered to be more environmentally conscious than many other areas of traditional agriculture, and 42% of growers said they believe that we can control climate change. Conversely, 58% of growers said that while they don’t believe we can control climate change, each business can do its part to make an impact on the environment by implementing sustainable practices.

“History has shown over time that there have been climate changes, even before man was on the earth,” said one grower.
Another said, “Although the planet has natural ebbs and flows in its climate, some human activities are enhancing the extremes of these events. Therefore, moving to practices and resources that are less detrimental to global climate is paramount.”

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