Carol Marks, Manager Horticulture, Bord Bia - The Irish Food Board
Image by: Carol Marks, Bord Bia
Why are trends so important?
Trends can help you look forward, ensuring that your strategy remains proactive to the changing consumer landscape. The bottom line is trends can act as a catalyst for new thoughts and ideas, providing inspiration for profitable growth.
IPM Essen is the biggest horticultural show on earth for the ornamental horticulture sector, with 1,500 exhibitors from 50 countries filling almost a million square meters of exhibition hall. Visitors attend the show from over 100 countries to gather information about trends and order goods for the coming season. This year more than ever, climate change and sustainability were the dominant subjects at the world’s leading fair for horticulture. A huge contingent of Irish growers were in attendance, seeking out the latest innovations and sustainability through technology, new plant varieties, marketing and packing to bring home to their customers at home.
Bord Bia’s Consumer Lifestyle Trends Come Out to Play at IPM Essen:
Reflecting on the show, the overarching theme was sustainability – whether through resource saving packaging solutions, energy saving solutions for glass house growing, organic fertilisers and substrates, plant pots made from recycled or biodegradable material or showcasing plants particularly suited to changing climatic conditions.
This theme tie in strongly with two of the Bia Consumer Lifestyle Trends, Responsible Living and to some degree Engaging Experiences
Point of sale and labels focused on making it easy for the home gardener to choose plants that benefit butterflies and bees – environmentally friendly gardening and promote the health benefits of gardening.
One novel innovation was the SaladJo vending machine, dispensing fresh heads of salad to consumers to pick up on their journey home, whether in a train station or a petrol station. A new concept, it may just catch on…
The next generation of plant pots made from recycled and recyclable materials, were on display. This is an area that has mushroomed (pardon the pun) over the last two years, with the circular economy firmly in focus and packaging companies leading the charge. It is worth noting that two years ago the pots were mainly on display on packaging company stands, but this year it was interesting to see so many nurseries showcasing their plants in the new eco-friendly solutions, and using it as a good news story for consumers.
The Implications for Irish Suppliers:
The Discovery Centre at IPM showcased the best of sustainability solutions from across the show space. According to Romeo Sommers, a leading horticultural trend watcher, and curator of the Discovery Centre, the horticulture industry needs to show the world what it is doing in this space. To conclude, this year more than ever, Responsible Living was the dominant trend at play at the world’s leading fair for horticulture. Irish growers and suppliers should take inspiration from the trend led examples which manifested at IPM, and use them to act as a catalyst for new thoughts and ideas that can help customers and consumers have a positive impact on society and the environment, and take pride in that sustainable way of living.