Developing Energy In the Orchard

Developing Energy In the Orchard

Developing Energy In the Orchard. I’m Greg Martin with today’s Fruit Grower Report.

More and more ag producers are discovering that they can produce energy on the farm and many orchardists are at the front of the pack. Kevin Barnes with USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Service says the Agriculture Department has come out with results from a survey of farmers who produce energy on their farms. The results may surprise you.

BARNES: We had about 8569 farms that reported producing energy on farm. I think what hit me was the significant growth that’s taken place in the past 5 years, how quickly this has taken off over a 5-year period. You are seeing more than double and quadruple in some cases the growth.

85-hundred farms is a tiny percentage of approximately 2-million farms in the U.S. Barnes talks about how many farms produce energy with each of the big three systems, solar, wind and methane digesters. 

BARNES: We show 1420 farms in the U.S. that have the turbines. 7968 farms have solar panels they’re producing on farm energy with and we have 121 farms in the U.S. that have methane digesters.

More and more government programs are being created to help farmers develop these energy producing systems

That’s today’s Fruit Grower Report. I’m Greg Martin on the Ag Information Network.

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