Magic Dirt Named “Consumer Innovation of the Year”

The Bioproducts World Conference has selected Magic Dirt™ as the winner of its 2014 international Consumer Innovation of the Year Award.

“We are pleased and honored by this recognition,” said Ted Sniegocki, a partner in Cenergy USA. “The award validates our commitment to produce a superior product for the consumer that is also beneficial to the environment.”

Magic Dirt is a certified organic Premium Potting Soil and sustainable alternative to peat moss developed from digested organic waste and introduced by Cenergy USA this year. The unique production process of Magic Dirt actually reduces greenhouse gas emissions.

“The sustainable attributes of Magic Dirt make a good and worthwhile story, but for many gardeners, the abundant nutrients – three-to-five times more than other brands– and its competitive pricing are the real stories,” added Bob Joblin, also a partner with Cenergy USA.

Independent growth tests confirm the wide range of uses for Magic Dirt both indoors and out. It grows healthy plants from seeds, nourishes transplanted seedlings in pots and when added to gardens it helps keep the soil loose and moist.

“The primary ingredient in Magic Dirt is the clean, fluffy, nutrient-rich fiber that remains after dairy and farm wastes have been heat-treated in an air-tight oxygen-free vessel for 20 days,” explained Sniegocki. “The process is done exclusively in DVO’s patented Two-Stage Mixed Plug Flow™ anaerobic digester. The digester captures methane gas which is used to generate renewable energy, reduces greenhouse gas emissions, and makes the fiber used in Magic Dirt.”

The international competition drew finalists from several countries, including Mexico, the Netherlands, and the USA. Each finalist was required to present the product’s merits and answer questions from the judges. Judging criteria also included the percentage of biobased content compared to the total product ingredients, innovation of the biobased application, uniqueness of the supply chain for the production of the biobased content from raw materials to production, and importance of the role of the biobased content in the function of the total product.

The Bioproducts World Conference was sponsored by the Bioproducts Innovation Center at Ohio State University and the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The Ohio Bioproducts Innovation Center seeks to promote the biobased materials and products industry and facilitate commercialization of new sustainable bioproduct technologies.

Magic Dirt has been certified as a Premium Potting Soil by the Mulch and Soil Council, certified 100% bio-based under the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Bio-Preferred Program and approved for organic production by the State of Idaho’s Department of Agriculture.