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On-Farm Energy
Farms in Wisconsin need electricity and fuel to power machinery, process foods into different products, and transport food products. Farms can play a major role in providing renewable energy solutions, both for on-farm use and for local communities. In addition, on-farm energy conservation can reduce agricultural greenhouse gas emissions and benefit a farm’s financial bottom line. Many energy conservation options are not going to be viable for farmers to use without financial incentives, so programs that encourage them should be introduced.
Farms that use energy efficiently and provide renewable energy for their own operation and their communities in a way that is not harmful to the environment and those who live there will help build local community climate resilience.
Explore Our Menu
Equity & Environmental Justice
Equity & Environmental Justice – Equity and justice should be included with each part of the menu. As you explore each menu, consider the most vulnerable populations within your community. Be sure to include and prioritize these groups as you develop and plan your efforts.
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- Food systems that promote on-farm energy should be inclusive and diverse. Be sure to consider and consult all possible user and producer groups, including but not limited to: ethnicities, cultures, socioeconomic statuses, etc.
- Support communication between production groups in metropolitan, suburban, rural, and tribal areas to promote diversity.
- Include diverse and representative populations, including farmworkers and food system workers (e.g., kitchen staff in restaurants and grocery employees) in planning and implementation of food production policy.
Education & Information
Education & Information – provides education and information ideas and resources. These are intended to be some of the first steps a community can take to address certain subsections.
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- Educational outreach to farms focused on the cost, benefits, and challenges of different renewable energy systems:
Low-Cost Strategies
Low-Cost Strategies – are focused on strategies and accompanying resources that usually will not require intensive staff capacity, fiscal resources, and maybe done through staff decisions.
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- Explore the possibility of renewable energy generation on farms in the community.
- AgSTAR: Biogas Recovery in the Agriculture Sector
- Solar Farms – RENEW Wisconsin
- Agri-Solar: Co-located solar, agrivoltaics, solar farming, and more
- Farm Energy
- RENEW Wisconsin
- Wind Energy for Homeowners, Farmers, and Small Businesses
- Assessing whether or not renewable solutions would be viable options for farms in the community (anaerobic digesters, solar, wind power):
- Connect farms with advisors:
- Invite a guest speaker to talk about soil health and/or climate-friendly farm practices, organize a field day, or conduct a rainfall simulation demonstration:
Significant Resource Deployment
Significant Resource Deployment – are strategies that may require more staff capacity, increased fiscal resources, and larger, possibly cohesive decisions.
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- Encourage farms with stored manure to install anaerobic digesters. Communities can help facilitate anaerobic digesters by connecting smaller farms:
- Agri-Solar: Resources for co-located solar, agrivoltaics, solar farming, and more.
- Enact zoning ordinances that allow for on-farm renewable energy generation:
- Ensure that outreach efforts include many diverse producers and consumers from the community to reflect different perspectives on climate adaptation and resiliency:
- Develop, promote, & host a farmers market:
Celebrating Successes
Celebrating Successes – are actions and strategies for communities to celebrate and keep the momentum going. They will help address positive outcomes of previous strategies taken and inspire further action.
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- Farm demonstrations – tours and presentations of farms using renewable energy solutions.
Grants & Funding
Grants & Funding – help communities support actions through financial means such as grants and other resources.
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- Support programs for farms to adopt solar, wind energy generation technology and improve energy efficiency:
Example in Action: Energy Systems
S&R Egg Farm is a full-service egg-laying operation located in southeast Wisconsin. The company started out with 12,000 chickens and has now grown to an estimated four million birds spanning 1,000+ acres of farmland and distributing over 1.2 billion eggs across the country each year. S&R Egg Farm purchased its Cold Spring operation in Palmyra, WI in 1994. After a series of extensive renovations and space additions, the site was able to accommodate 17 barns while increasing capacity to 4.2 million birds in 2017. S&R Egg Farm’s commitment to growing a modern, sustainable, and environmentally friendly facility allows the company to produce quality products its customers can enjoy, such as cage-free eggs from the Cold Spring facility.
