Papillons x Minagris Joint Stakeholder Forum
Today we co-hosted the Minagris x Papillons' joint stakeholder forum on "Plasticulture: An International Perspective on Environmental Sustainability". This was a joint effort from our partnership with Papillons, another EU Horizon2020 funded research programme focussed on agri-plastics and soils.
Here, partners, stakeholders and organisations presented in Greece and online from across the world, including the FAO, UNEP, and European Bioplatics. They discussed plastics in agriculture, specifically in acricultural soils, both intentional and unintentional. There was talk of where these plastics come from, how they get there, why they are useful in food security, what harm they can do to plants, animals & microbes, and what the ramifications of this might be now and into the future.
We look forward to a thriving partnership with Papillions going forwards, and excited to read their findings as they emerge!
MINAGRIS case study sampling has begun!
Soil sampling for plastic analysis has now begun across our 11 Europe-wide case study sites. This stage of the project took a good deal of planning to ensure that we have minimised the risk of our samples being contaminated with plastic particles shed from our equipment. For example, our microplastic samples are being collected in alternatives to the usual plastic sampling pots; instead, we are collecting them in paper bags, often lined with foil.
We are sampling for macro-, micro- and nano-plastics in fields across our sites. These samples are then being carefully packaged to avoid plastic contamination before being sent to different labs for specialist analysis of their soil type, plastic content and microbiomes.
For further information on our sampling protocol, please don’t hesitate to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. We hope to have sampling completed by October, when we will begin our analysis. In the meantime, enjoy our stream of photos from our sampling campaign!
