Tuesday 18 October 7-9pm At the Fleece Inn, Bretforton
Free buffet to start
The Future of Horticulture in the Vale – an Inspiring Story!
Commencing at 7 pm for Supper and the Speakers, followed by TEV AGM at approximately 9pm: 9.30 close.
Evesham Vale Growers (EVG), owned and operated by-Andrew Billie and family – are pioneering an integrated tomato growing/agri business which has sustainability at its heart.
As the only tomato producer in the UK with a sizeable outdoor farming operation, EVG are in a unique position to utilise sustainable initiatives to reduce the rising costs of food production and future proofing its business against energy price rises.
Not only do they harvest rainwater to grow their tomatoes in environmentally friendly hydroponic systems, they utilise all their waste to produce energy. The waste from both their growing and packing operations powers an anaerobic digester (AD) that in turn produces digestate and biogas. Carbon dioxide and heat are also generated, both of which are utilised in the greenhouse growing operation. The biogas is sold into the national grid, and digestate is spread on their crops rather than having to use chemical fertilisers. Any vegetable and salad waste with little calorific value for the ADs is fed to their 350 head of Aberdeen Angus beef cattle, which then produce manure that is a good feedstuff for the digester.
In addition to producing energy from waste, they use solar panels on the roof of their packhouse operation to power their packing machines and offices, and have a huge solar farm generating electricity for the national grid.
Contact/RSVP Steve Martin at esmartin@talktalk.net to reserve a place.
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