Sweetcorn and speciality vegetable grower Barfoots of Botley has become carbon neutral with the installation of a built-in biodigester.
The new plant that began turning the group’s sweetcorn-farming waste into fuel on 1 July was previously used by the National Grid to produce the equivalent energy to power 2,000 homes a day. With the connection of a private wire to the grid, Barfoots is now harnessing this energy to power all its packhouses, negating the need for any outside energy source.
With the surplus energy created, Barfoots is fuelling the equivalent of 1,200 homes.
The West Sussex company now plans to introduce six more biodigesters as part of its renewable energy programme and will also service local communities as the new biodigesters will be able to process household food waste.
The equipment will also power five electric vehicles that the company will be running from next month. Each van and car will be able to run for 150 miles on a single electric charge made possible by the biodigester.
Chairman Peter Barfoot said: “We are committed to ensuring all our farming methods are as environmentally sensitive and sustainable as possible.
“By using clever, precision-farming techniques and turning waste to fuel with our biodigester, we can ensure our factories and farms are powered in a green and environmental way, and can help the UK to cut down on its use of fossil fuels to power and heat homes.
“We hope our biodigester expansion and the introduction of an electric transportation fleet will help us continue in our mission to become 100 per cent carbon neutral and alert the community of West Sussex and across the UK the importance of recycling food waste to ensure we have a brighter and greener future.”
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