The use of biodegradable films on Irish maize crops this year has resulted in higher yields, despite costing more per acre, according to CEO of Maizetech John Foley.
Traditional maize films are a type of oxo-degradable plastics, the sale of which was banned under Directive (EU) 2019/904, more commonly known as the EU’s Single Use Plastics Directive.
The ban on the sale of these films came into effect on July 3, 2021, meaning maize crops must now be grown under biodegradable films. Speaking on Farmland, Foley said that using these films worked out well for growers this year.
“I would have to say it has gone very well, we had a lot of compostable film out there in 2022 and I think farmers have now seen the benefits to it,” he said.
He explained that while they are more expensive, the films bring higher yields.
“There are higher temperatures under that type of film once it’s laid. It’s all about temperature in the early part of the season for a maize plant,” he said.
“In the month of May, we had a crop that was probably a week or ten days ahead of photodegradable film when it came to breakthrough, which is normally the first week in June.
“As soon as it came through that compostable film, it just took off like a rocket.
“And of course, the real benefit is that by the harvest time, that film had totally disappeared from the surface.”
While the directive requiring the use of these films came into effect 15 months ago, Foley said that his company foresaw these regulations and began experimenting with compostable alternatives back in 2015.
“We were aware that it was coming down the line and we started to trial compostable film back five or six years ago so we knew at some stage it was going to happen,” he said.
Overall, John reported that it has been a strong year for maize, which may come as a relief for some farmers who have a limited supply of silage for the winter.
“The dry weather had no effect. Maize is a tropical crop so we’ll always get enough moisture in Ireland in my opinion to grow it, so apart from the odd field where there was a sandpit underneath, maize has done very very well in 2022,” he concluded
You can watch the full interview with John here at the YouTube link below: