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Plants aren’t cutting it in the office in terms of improving air quality, new search data suggests.

Indoor air quality has remained one of the top priorities for employees, with 62% of the global workforce citing they would leave their job if their employer failed to create a healthier indoor environment, according to Honeywell’s Health Building Survey 2022.

Similarly, interest in office plants boomed during lockdown. However, despite continued interest in the quality of office air, new data shows a sharp drop-off in search volume for office plants.

Searches for “indoor plants” have similarly declined since the end of lockdown, whilst searches for “air quality” and “office air” have been consistent throughout 2022.

Jason Thomas, Strategic Sales Manager at Banner, comments
“As employees transitioned back into the office after lockdown, it was no surprise that biophilia – a love of plants – emerged as a trend. Mental health was at an all-time low for most of us, and the natural integration of plants into the workspace not only improved air quality, but proved to be a source of comfort for those anxious about coming back to the workplace."

 “Plants obviously provide a host of benefits in any space, but their ability to improve air quality is often over-estimated, and now that offices are back to full capacity, they’re simply not doing the job. This might be why interest has dropped off.”

This is supported by the most popular search queries around office plants and air quality, which include:
-    Do plants really improve air quality?
-    Can plants improve air quality?
-    Why indoor air quality is important?
-    How indoor air quality affects your health?

Jason continues, “Air quality naturally remains a high priority post-pandemic, so facilities managers are looking at the best quality air purifying systems on the market, which is clear in the search data and backed-up by our own sales data.” 

Most popular search terms for ‘Plant Air Quality’ and ‘Office Air Quality’:

Searches for “Office Plants” in the UK over the last five years:

Searches for “Office Plants” in the UK over the last year:

Searches for “Air Quality” in the UK over the last five years:

Searches for “Air Quality” in the UK over the last year:

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To get in touch with Banner, please call your account manager or call on 0843 538 331. To become a customer visit https://www.banneruk.com/contact/