Partner Insight: Essex to sow the seeds of onion farming's future
An exciting new partnership between the University of Essex and major onion supplier Stourgarden will see researchers try to grow the vegetable outside traditional soil-based methods… inside a bright pink shipping container.
University of Essex
17 June 2024
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4 min read
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Professor Tracy Lawson, of Essex's School of Life Sciences, will be aiming to use innovative techniques to grow onions and help Stourgarden explore ways to make the production process more environmentally friendly.
Stourgarden, based in Great Horkesley, is one of the UK's leading onions growers and supplies produce to high-profile retailers, global restaurant chains and food manufacturers.
Professor Lawson will experiment with aeroponic growing methods to grow onions in a more sustainable way, which will see them grown in an air and mist environment.
The research partnership will aim to reduce the carbon footprint of the production process, speed up growth, as well as prevent disease which can leave soil unusable for future crops.
"This project is extremely exciting as it expands on our ongoing research focused on manipulating light within controlled environments and vertical farms," Professor Lawson said.
"We're now channeling this expertise towards a crop with diverse growth stages, ranging from seed germination to bulb formation.
"Working directly with a local company to develop the right conditions for rapid growth demonstrated the translation aspect and potential impact of this work."
What is the goal of the collaboration?
Project lead from Stourgarden, Jonathan Bell, says the project will put the growing of onions under the microscope and allow us to understand more about the crop's growth and how environmental conditions affect an onion plant.
As farmers prepare for the upcoming autumn planting season, the significance of soil health, weather conditions and the right adjuvant in optimising pre-emergence herbicide performance cannot be overstated, warns Interagro.