The employees of Blantyre Farms are celebrating after the local pork producers have picked up another award for its innovation in electricity production.
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The 2019 Bioenergy Innovation Awards were held on the Gold Coast on November 18 with Blantyre Farms named as one of the finalists in the Bioenergy Technology Innovation Award.
"Manure effluent from Blantyre's piggery flows into a covered anaerobic pond, the biogas is captured and refined into methane which runs the generators to provide electricity and heating for their use onsite," a Bioenergy Australia spokesperson said.
"Not only is Blantyre producing energy and reducing emissions, the solid effluent, after the harvest of the biogas, is spread on their paddocks as a complete carbon based fertiliser.
"This reduces the purchase of synthetic fertiliser, and is used to grow grain which is fed back to the pigs."
The Bioenergy Technology Innovation award was presented to Blantyre Farms for its innovation using the covered anaerobic ponds and how it reflects a truly closed loop approach to waste management.
"This efficient and cost-effective technology is an on-farm biogas production system which offsets Blantyre's on-farm energy costs," the Bioenergy Australia spokesperson said.
Blantyre Farms owner Edwina Beveridge is ecstatic about the award which joins several others the company has picked up for its sustainability.
"We are really proud to have our commitment to bioenergy and sustainability recognised," Mrs Beveridge said.
"Our team works hard to ensure our biogas system continually operates and runs efficiently."
Blantyre Farms became fully self-powered in the October of 2012 and since then has won several awards including the Resource Efficiency award at the 2018 Green Globe Awards.
"We were also honoured with the Young Environment Citizen of the Year award from Hilltops Council in the 2019 Australia Day awards," Mrs Beveridge said.
Rebecca Hewson