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Know How / Farm energy

Get advice on diversifying into the farm energy sector or using farm-generated renewable energy to cut energy costs. Find out how to maximise anaerobic digestion (AD) plant performance, lease land for battery and generator sites, and grow crops for the biofuels market.

Practical advice

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FARM ENERGY

Experts outline on-farm renewable energy options

Renewable energy has become a popular on-farm solution for cutting emissions and reducing bills from mainstream suppliers. So what are the options for renewable energy use on farm? In the…

DIVERSIFICATION

Renewable energy investment: What to expect and what to avoid

Producing clean electricity is predicted to one day outstrip rural tourism as a secondary income for UK farms. Interest in investing in renewables or leasing sites to developers is high,…

FARM ENERGY

4 ways dairy farmers can cut energy costs

With energy costs having quadrupled in the past year, it is little surprise that more farmers are carrying out energy audits to identify how they can make savings. The NFU…

FARM ENERGY

Advice on small-scale solar for lower farm energy costs

Whether for heating, ventilation, drying or cooling, the payback on a solar investment can be as low as four years if the alternative is a high-cost conventional commercial electricity supply.…

FARM ENERGY

On-farm renewable energy generation: What to consider

Generating energy from solar, wind and biomass sources can significantly reduce a farm’s power costs. This is particularly the case with providers increasing unit rates on some electricity and gas…

BUSINESS CLINIC

Business Clinic: Is solar promotion agreement a good idea?

Whether it’s a legal, tax, insurance, management or land issue, Farmers Weekly’s experts can help. Miles Thomas of Carter Jonas Rural sets out how an alternative approach to a solar…

Case studies

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DAIRY

How dairy’s solar fence captures energy at peak demand

At Kilmeaden Farm in County Waterford, cows graze either side of a 150m fence that runs north to south the length of one of David Foran’s fields. This is no…

MACHINERY

NI farm transforms slurry and food waste into bio-LNG fuel

A multi-million pound diversification project has allowed an enterprising dairy farm to convert slurry and food waste into biofuel, as it looks to tap into the growing market for renewable…

LIVESTOCK

Farmer's engineering skills make farm net energy producer

A mechanically minded Yorkshire farmer has made the family farm a net electricity producer by capitalising on tariffs and applying his engineering skills. Former oil industry engineer and mixed farmer…

DAIRY

How a dairy is harvesting methane to save on diesel costs

Dairy farmers Kevin and Kate Hoare are mitigating the effects of soaring diesel prices by running a tractor on methane harvested from the slurry pit. Trenance Farm in Cornwall was…

DAIRY

Dairy wins sustainability award and reduces energy costs

Buckwell Lodge Farm won VetPartners dairy sustainability award this year for its work on improving genetics, cow health, grassland and soil management. Father and son team, Marcus and Sam Hunt,…

LIVESTOCK

How solar panel diversification works for a sheep enterprise

Leasing land to a company for a 47MW solar park is generating a reliable income for farmers Stephen and Clare Morgan, at Fenton Home Farm, near Haverfordwest. It dovetails nicely…

Insights

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FARM ENERGY

Why England’s onshore wind planning rules need reform

Onshore wind is a low-cost and efficient technology that is well-suited to the UK, given it is one of the windiest countries in Europe. The cost of installing turbines is…

INPUT MARKETS AND PRICES

Food production jeopardised by sky-high energy costs

Dwindling supplies of some food types on UK supermarket shelves look set to continue, as farmers rein in production in the face of rampant energy inflation. Research by Farmers Weekly…