Green and Pleasant Wins Contract to Build Anaerobic Digestion Plant at Bocaddon Farm

Online, May 19, 2010 (Newswire.com) - West Sussex, UK, Green and Pleasant Recycling Limited, today announced plans to form a joint venture with Cornwall-based dairy farm, Bocaddon, to build an on-site anaerobic digestion unit which aims to significantly reduce the farm's carbon footprint.

The proposal, due to be operational by December 2010, aims to cut the farm's CO2 emissions by over 3,000 tonnes per year, while generating enough heat and electricity to power the entire farm plus surrounding businesses.

The plan will see Green and Pleasant update the existing slurry system with an anaerobic digestion system and to add approximately 10,000 tonnes per year of Cornish biodegradable commercial food waste to the farm's own 6,000 tonnes of manure. This will allow Bocaddon to stop using artificial fertiliser and help grow their cattle feeds, saving the farm approximately £80,000 per year on artificial fertiliser alone. The AD system will produce natural bio fertiliser and soil conditioner, all of which will be used on the farm.

Green and Pleasant will combine technologies from Norwegian-based Biowaz AS and UK-based Bioplex Technologies to create an AD solution specifically to meet Bocaddon's needs. The Combined Heat and Power (CHP) system will be capable of producing an estimated 370kw/h of electricity and 545kw/h of heat, dramatically reducing their reliance on fossil fuels.

The project is being funded via a joint venture formed by Green and Pleasant and Bocaddon Farm. Julian Maiklem, Managing Director, Green and Pleasant commented: 'We believe that the technology can allow us to recreate the symbiosis between farmers as producers, food companies as distributors, and people as consumers, and that AD can help turn the human food chain back into a food cycle, improving the quality of food production, food supply and food waste management.'

This week's coalition agreement reached by the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats includes a pledge to fulfil joint ambitions to create a low carbon economy. It includes measures to promote a huge increase in energy from waste through anaerobic digestion. Crucially, this project helps promote and deliver viable and profitable farming.