Today is World Soil Day! It's held annually on 5 December, since 2014 when it was adopted by the UN General Assembly. The date of was chosen because it was the official birthday of the late King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand, who officially sanctioned the event.

Soils are an important component of the natural system and helps human wellbeing through its contribution to food, water and energy security and mitigation of biodiversity loss. And of course, soils are at the core of our business. We provide topsoils of various specifications, as well as pure composts - these are the "black stuff" you may immediately think of as soil. But plants needs other types of soil as well - subsoil and root zone to get themselves stabilised, watered and drained; SUDS soils for surviving in urban environments (the acronym? it stands for Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems); light substrates for use in roof gardens; and endless special mixtures for particularly demanding environments.

The FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN) estimates that 95% of the world's food is dependent on soil; and that up to a third of global soil is already degraded. It is formed through very long-term processes and cannot easily be replaced. So, look after your soil - it's what keeps you fed!