At Bedport farm we aim to be carbon neutral. The process of measuring a companies carbon foot print is not as easy as it seems, because one has to put a carbon value on every input the farm uses, and than to divide it between the products the farm is producing.

In a simplified form we would producing approximately 39 tonnes of CO₂ per year in the form of purchased energy, mostly by the electricity usage of the chicken houses, but it also includes fuel for the tractors, cars and all our private usage.

The 4000 woodland trees that we have planted will probably absorb about 40 tonnes per year, at 10 kg per tree. Additional carbon is absorbed in the soil as the organic matter content in the soil rises.

We have adapted the ventilation regime, our feed purchasing policy and selected a greener electricity provider.

In 2011 we were granted planning permission for a small 55 kW wind turbine, which we expect to produce about twice the amount of energy used on the farm. As we got more involved in renewable energy production we have decided to “branch out” into helping other farmers realising renewable energy production projects on their farms. Amongst other things we install free solar barns on farms. More info can be found at www.freesolarbarn.co.uk