Organic feed factory ForFarmers Lochem on its way to CO2-neutral production
With biogas from dairy farmers in Laren/Lochem (NL), Reudink, a producer of organic animal feed and part of ForFarmers, is making all the energy consumption required for the production of organic animal feed at the Lochem location more sustainable.
As part of its sustainability ambitions, ForFarmers wants to reduce the CO2 emissions of its factories and logistics. ForFarmers does this by minimising its energy consumption and purchasing energy sustainably or generating it itself. Judith Hofland, director of Reudink, explains: ‘Reudink already uses 100% green electricity, low in CO2. Nevertheless, a large part of the energy consumption at our location in Lochem consists of gas. To meet this necessary gas demand, we are switching to biogas, a sustainable alternative to natural gas.’ As soon as Reudink switches completely to biogas in addition to using green energy, the production site is expected to be CO2 neutral by 2026.
Manure as energy source
Fourteen dairy farmers in the Laren/Lochem area are focusing on regenerative agriculture in several respects, with an eye for circularity and biodiversity. With this in mind, they formed a cooperative to produce biogas from cow manure. Using a direct underground pipeline from the farmyard, they will supply both Reudink and other companies in the area with biogas. ‘In the near future, Reudink will be supplying organic feed to cows that have helped make the production of that same feed possible. That strengthens the idea of circularity,’ says Hofland.
Sustainability
Farmers are showing this way that they can make a substantial contribution to the energy transition in the Netherlands and to reducing emissions. André de Groot, dairy farmer and chairman of the cooperative, confirms this: ‘The biogas yield from three cows is enough to provide gas for one family. This contributes to the Dutch ambition to have replaced 20% of natural gas with biogas by 2030.’ ForFarmers wants to help farms become more circular and reduce emissions. The ambition is to provide other ForFarmers locations with biogas directly from the farmyard, in addition to the Reudink location in Lochem and the ForFarmers-location in Deventer.
