Arable Farms

For example as outlined in the Crops section of the Toolkit, for arable farmers reducing the number of passes, depth and disturbance to the soil will lower the GHG emissions from fuel usage and soil organic matter loss.  

Crop storage is also a major source of operational emissions for arable farmers.  Arable farmers should make sure all controls are set to the right settings, as inappropriate settings can waste up to 25% of the energy used.  Humidity is the key to crop storage and drying, having the right level could save up to 40% of your energy use due to drying. Cooling crops rather than drying them could save 10% in like for like comparisons of energy costs.

Dairy Farms

Specific actions include installing a plate cooler to reduce the use of electricity for tank cooling on dairy farms. The heat released from bulk tank cooling of the milk can also be reused to heat the hot water for washing round via a heat exchange unit.  Both items are easily retrofitted to a parlour and most dairy farmers now have one or the other or even both.

Find out more in the Livestock and Dairy sections of the Toolkit.

Fuel and Vehicle Use

Across all farms, emissions directly from diesel and electricity use are straight forward to quantify accurately and usually make up a significant proportion of emissions, on a dairy farm accounting for around 10% or up to around 30% on an arable farm.  Electricity use accounts for 36% of all energy used on-farms (Warwick HRI).

Make sure vehicles are regularly serviced and tyre pressures are correct – check the manual.  Ensure appropriate vehicle loadings and remove unnecessary vehicle racks to reduce drag and save fuel.  Drivers can also be sent on efficient driving courses which should translate into fuel savings.

There is also scope for imaginative change, for example if you run a veg box delivery scheme, could you switch to a hybrid or electric van?  This will dramatically reduce transport emissions.  If you are interested, why not read the blog from FCCT Director Andrew Rigg on his electric car journey?

Any savings and efficiencies that can be made here will automatically benefit the bottom line, and if cost effective should be implemented as a priority.

Minimum Tillage and Precision Drilling

Carbon is released from soil when it is disturbed.  Reducing the frequency and intensity of cultivations results in less Soil Organic Matter (SOM) being oxidised and also improves soil structure.

Research shows a strong correlation between increasing soil organic matter and higher yields.

How can this be achieved?  By adopting ‘minimum tillage’ and / or precision drilling operations, it is possible to reduce the disturbance of on-farm soils and build up soil organic matter.

These systems use GPS tracking and guidance to reduce soil disturbance and only use the same lanes for driving across fields (‘Controlled Traffic Farming’).  This has the added financial benefit of lower fuel costs.

Soil and yield mapping techniques allow greater precision in fertiliser applications and other inputs needed to be applied across an area, saving costs, by showing exactly which areas are in need to greater applications and which less.

Precision drilling ensures applications are applied in uniform amounts to uniform depths and only to the areas requiring them.

Read the Hendred Farm FCCT case study for practical examples of minimum tillage and precision drilling in the field.

For more information on tillage and carbon emissions, why not read the field operations page in the arable section of the Toolkit?

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It is worth considering the wider sustainability of all the activities on your farm including:

1. processing of products; is this being done in the most efficient way?
2. the packaging of the farm’s products and of those bought in; using recycled materials helps reduce emissions and expensive waste to landfill
3. the food consumed on-site; are you importing food which could be provided from the farm, or are there synergies with food deliveries and farm transport?
4. Company clothing and associated equipment; where and how is this made?

Waste minimisation

How to minimise waste should be a concern for every building during its construction and operation

Landfill gate fees are rising every year as the government must meet EU level targets for recycling. Therefore reducing waste and increasing recycling rates is a sensible business decision.

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Any new building takes hundreds of hours of man power and a lot of effort and hassle to construct so why pull down old ones to meet new demands? Existing buildings have large so-called embedded footprints in terms of the energy and carbon that went into their construction.  Just think of the transport to get the materials to site, furnaces running to create the steel structures and the effort that went into the on-site construction, let alone the cost of them.  It therefore makes sense to maximise their use and efficiency, whenever possible rather than demolishing them and putting up new structures.

‘Retrofitting’ – improving the efficiency of existing buildings – is an efficient way of prolonging their life while reducing energy consumption and running costs.

New buildings

If a new building is definitely required on the farm, consider these factors:

1. The construction materials and embodied energy contained in them, for example a new shed could contain galvanised steel and concrete; very energy intensive to produce.
2. The materials and construction waste from the old building (if replacing an existing structure) – recycling as much of the waste as possible will save material and expensive landfill costs.
3. Building orientation and shading; by positioning any building correctly, ‘solar gain’ can be maximised, meaning natural light provides a large proportion of the lighting requirements, and there is the potential for solar PV modules to be positioned to maximise efficiency.
4. Innovative new technology which will bring down running costs; such as running piping underneath manure and cost sheds to more efficiently heat the space.

Do you have any alternatives to constructing new buildings?  For example can existing buildings be adapted to take on new functions, and will the function itself still be necessary in the near future?

If you are considering a new build, why not have a look at the BREEAM website, which certifies buildings that hit certain sustainability criteria. Be inspired by reading their case study of sustainable building construction of the Bombay Sapphire Distillery Process buildings in Hampshire!

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Ideas to make savings

Make sure machinery settings are optimised for the most efficient use, for example is machinery being left on standby unnecessarily?

Is all machinery kept in good condition and running on the optimum settings?

What is the source of energy for processing machinery and related processes – oil driers for example are very inefficient and could be replaced with biomass dryers.

Gantry feeding animals centrally in sheds with precision feeding technology can optimise and ensure feeds are right for each animal and standardise feed sizes to reduce costs.

Enterprise specific guidance

Pig buildings and housing design (BPEX)

The British pig industry has suffered from a lack of investment in buildings, mostly in nursery and grower/finisher accommodation.  A consequence of this is poor pig performance on many pig units and this leads to an increased cost of production.  The information from BPEX includes guides to building new pig accommodation, and webinars, hints and tips as to improving the efficiency of current housing.

Efficient Cattle Housing Design (EBLEX)

Good design will support good health and welfare to the financial benefit of the farm business.  The target for most cattle buildings is to ensure a design that maximises ventilation potential on a still day, without exposing the livestock to elevated air speed when the wind is blowing.  This booklet provided through EBLEX’s Better Returns Programme details aspects to consider when looking at efficient cattle buildings.

Efficient Poultry Housing 

The main sources of energy use in poultry housing is heating, lighting and ventilation.  The Poultry energy efficiency section of the Toolkit has lots more hints and tips on ways to cut energy consumption in poultry housing.

Efficient Potato Storage

Storage 2020 is an intiative which aims to make potato storage more cost effective, energy efficient and sustainable.  The intiative which is a collaboration between the Potato Council, Sutton Bridge Crop Storage Research Facility and the Farm Energy Centre assessed the quality of your potato store, how efficient it is and helps to ensure the optimum returns from storage. Find further information here.

HGCA’s Grain storage information

Safe, effective grain storage is key to assuring crop quality and helping prevent loss of premiums through claims and rejections. Access the guidance here.

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To get an idea of the most pressing areas for action, you can commission a domestic (farmhouse) or commercial (office) Energy Performance Certificate, which will identify which measures to prioritise.  In many farm businesses energy used in the farmhouse can account for a significant amount of the total energy used on the farm.  Especially in older properties, energy use in the farmhouse can be very high and there can be lots of areas where heat (and energy) escapes.

Insulation

The first priority should be insulation, as stopping heat escaping is the best step to reducing energy use and therefore will save money on heating bills.  Just adding sufficient insulation to a property can save at least 15% on annual energy bills.  The Farm Energy Centre estimate that increasing the level of loft insulation from 100mm to 270mm will give savings of between £150 and £300 per annum depending on fuel type and the size of the property.  

Cavity walls can be insulated with injected foam, beads or fibre.  Savings can be between £100 and £200 per year.  Solid walls can be insulated with dry lining.  

Excluding draughts can be one of the cheapest and most efficient ways to save energy (and money) in any type of building.  20% of heat loss can be avoided by draught-proofing windows and doors.  

Other options to consider in terms of improving efficiency in the farmhouse are listed below:

• Water heating – including the right tariffs, lagging pipes, and looking at types of heating
• Domestic appliances and IT equipment – don’t leave things on standby
• Lighting

For more information on the items above, the Farm Energy Centre has produced a great info sheet which looks at these options in more detail.  Download it here. 

Rainwater Harvesting

If you are on a water meter, also consider installing rainwater recycling (greywater) methods which capture and re-use otherwise wasted rainwater. Buildings under construction present the ideal opportunity to install a RWH system – or it can be added to existing structures. A system may involve diverting drainage to a tank or reservoir to collect water and if necessary, could include treatment to improve water quality for specific uses. Distribution pumps and pipes may also be required to supply the water to where it is needed on-farm. There is a RWH system to suit all needs and budgets. It could simply be created by diverting roof gutters into a storage tank or water butt, or it could be more complex involving pumped storage, filters and UV treatment for use on ready-to-eat crops.

For more information on installing a rainwater harvesting system on-farm, why not read the Environment Agency’s guide, which has all the information needed about permits, water quality and how to install.  Access it here.

Material choice

Materials are an important consideration, for example what is the embodied carbon associated with a particular material and are they recycled or reclaimed alternatives?  Architectural salvage yards are good sources of cheap reclaimed materials for example.

Consider using chemical and Volatile Organic Compound (VOC) free paints – these are less damaging to the environment and to human health, but cost roughly the same amount.  Every year chemical paints emit millions of tonnes of CO2.

Equipment such as furniture and technology have ‘carbon costs’ as well – anything new will have taken resources to create, so bear this in mind when considering furnishings and equipment and again consider reusing items.  Locally produced items will have a lower carbon footprint, so buy local.

Further sources of information

The Farm Energy Centre – a wide range of practical advice for farmers and growers focussing on energy efficiency.

Energy Saving Trust – Home energy checker – an interactive service to see how to achieve lower home energy bills

Rainwater harvesting – the SWARM Hub website features a section on installing a Rainwater Harvesting System on-farm, access it here.

Farming Futures factsheet on energy efficiency

The Farming Futures website also has a library of case studies that feature farmers who have implemented rainwater harvesting systems on-farm.

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