News » 29.07.2026 - Turning innovation into traction
Changing supply chains, growing interest in alternative substrate materials and increasing regional differences in substrate availability are creating new questions for growers and suppliers. That changing landscape led Ted Buis and Jennifer Neujahr to establish Next Step Solutions, a company focused on helping horticultural businesses commercialize products, technologies and growing media through strategy, commercialization and hands on execution.
"Demand is expanding quickly, supply is tightening and there is increasing focus on non peat materials and how those materials can be brought into the market at scale," says Jennifer.
Combining global experience
The company was established after Ted and Jennifer, who have known each other for nearly a decade through their work in the substrate sector, found they shared the same view of where the market is heading and saw an opportunity to combine their expertise and networks.
"We kept having conversations about where the substrate industry is going and what is needed, especially around new products and new ideas. At some point we realized it made sense to work together," says Ted.
Rather than acting as a distributor, the company positions itself as a commercialization platform that combines strategic advice with practical execution. It works with suppliers, technology developers, startups, growers and investors to validate products through targeted commercial trials before wider market introductions while also supporting companies with market entry, partnerships and commercial growth.
The company's projects generally fall into three groups. One consists of startups and private equity firms entering horticulture. Another includes companies from outside the sector looking for opportunities in controlled environment agriculture. The third focuses on established horticultural businesses seeking to expand into new products, technologies or markets.
Current projects include introducing substrate components into new regions, validating propagation media, supporting steam sanitation technology, sourcing raw materials and advising companies involved in acquisitions, market expansion and strategic partnerships.
The company is also working with technologies related to substrate reuse. One example is steam sanitation systems that allow growing media to be disinfected and reused, reducing dependence on raw materials needing to travel long distances.
"Supply chains have become less predictable," Ted says. "If growers can safely reuse materials after steaming, they become less dependent on materials that they have to transport, stock and store."
"We understand the market, the growers and the products," Ted says. "We can estimate what a grower is willing to pay and whether a product has a place in the market. We don't believe in making a lot of noise before knowing whether something works. We look for growers in our network all over the world who are willing to test products, validate them commercially and build from the commercialization roadmap from there."
The company manages those trials and uses the results to help suppliers make decisions about market introductions. According to Ted, selecting the right partners is often more valuable than broad promotion in the early stages of product development. The company often remains involved after the initial strategy, helping clients translate commercial opportunities into successful implementation and sales acceleration.
Beyond individual projects, the founders see their role as helping companies recognize emerging market signals early, connect ideas across regions and prepare for changes before they become obvious to the wider industry.
"We see ourselves as the non-peat experts"
Much of the company's work currently centers on substrates. Both founders point to increasing interest in reducing dependence on a single raw material substrate strategies, although the situation differs between regions. The company works internationally across a range of horticulture and specialty agriculture markets.
"We see ourselves as the non peat experts," Jennifer says. "We value peat and believe it is an incredible raw material. There are already many people who know everything about peat, and peat will remain a major component of the industry. But we will need more ingredients than peat if we are going to keep pace with global demand for substrates."
She explains that peat remains a dominant component in major horticulture markets, including Europe and North America.
"The U.S. is still very much a peat market because we source most of it from Canada," she says. "Peat works well, but the disruptions we've seen over the past several years show the risk of depending on one substrate type. We want companies to gain experience with alternatives such as coir and other raw materials."
Alongside peat, coir and wood fiber, the company expects locally available biomass streams to play a larger role in future substrate mixes. Materials such as sugarcane bagasse, agave bagasse and residues from the palm industry are examples currently being evaluated. Technologies that enable substrate reuse are also expected to become increasingly important as growers look for more resilient production systems.
At the same time, knowledge about these and other alternative growing media remains fragmented. Sawdust substrates are widely used in parts of North America, while European growers have developed more experience with coir. Other regions have built expertise with wood fiber, rice hulls or locally available materials.
"We're trying to connect that knowledge," Ted says. "A company in Brazil may know coir very well but have little experience combining it with wood fiber or peat. In other regions, it's the opposite."
"Between the two of us, we bring about sixty years of experience in the industry," Jennifer says. "Usually we have already met someone who has solved a similar problem somewhere else. Connecting those people can shorten the learning curve."
Source: www.floraldaily.com
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