Horticulture's Dirty Little Secret — How This Company Is Greening An Antiquated Industry

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When you go to the store for your gardening needs, almost all bagged potting soil or soil mixes will include peat moss. By definition, peat moss is a large absorbent moss that grows on boggy ground and it can be used to improve the soil. For everyday consumers, it is a helpful addition to their gardens but for industry insiders, it is a sore point because of its negative impact on the environment. 

Using and harvesting peat moss for gardening soils is destructive in two major ways - there is a massive carbon dioxide release when harvested and peat moss takes so long to grow that it is rarely considered a renewable resource. 

Peat moss grows in bogs that store massive amounts of carbon dioxide so when the peat is harvested, high levels of carbon dioxide are released into the atmosphere. Not only is carbon dioxide being released but the peat bogs are no longer able to healthily store carbon. Furthermore, peat moss takes a very long time to grow. An expert on peatlands shares, "I compare it to cutting down old-growth forests. Sure, you can plant new trees, but it's going to take a long time."

Luckily for the gardening industry, peat moss is not an essential ingredient in soil bags. It is not only replaceable but there are current sustainable alternatives. One company that has seen wild success with their alternative is PittMoss, one of the only upcycled alternatives to peat moss. 

Overall, the lawn and garden industry is expected to grow annually by 2.64% from 2023- 2028. For soil specifically, the market is expected to have a CAGR of 11% from 2022-2027. PittMoss might be well positioned to scale up manufacturing to meet growing demand — the company has already seen commercial success and was recognized by Better Homes and Gardens as the Best Overall Potting Soil.

PittMoss uses recycled paper waste and turns the fiber particles into sustainable products that effectively create super-clean soil. Since the company’s beginnings in 2014, PittMoss reports that its products have prevented the emission of 15,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide. PittMoss looks to be all-around healthier for the environment and PittMoss products also require less water which is an additional boost. To date, the company’s product has saved more than 30 million gallons of water. 

PittMoss’s alternative to peat moss could be especially valuable because of the uptick in gardening that happened as a result of COVID-19. One survey showed that ⅓ of all participants of the survey started gardening in 2020 and had sustainable plans to continue. These stats are especially high among young people and having access to sustainable products is often essential for people who are developing a green thumb. 

PittMoss is currently hosting a raise on Start Engine to help the company capitalize on the industry’s emerging market standards — notably that peat moss is not sustainable as an additive and consumers are interested in high-yield soil that is also good for the environment. The company predicts that in the coming years, gross margins will approach 50%. Currently, over 300 businesses worldwide have PittMoss on their shelves. Learn more about PittMoss. 

Click here to read more about PittMoss’s raise and how to invest.

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Photo by Steven Weeks on Unsplash