March 9, 2012 10.30 am This story is over 144 months old

Lincolnshire Poacher cheese goes green

Greener cheese: The Poacher cheese farm has gone green thanks to the installation of a solar power system.

A popular Lincolnshire cheese is now green, thanks to a new solar energy system.

Lincolnshire Poacher cheese has been made by Tim and Simon Jones on their farm near Ulceby for 20 years, but now the pair will be using greener methods to produce the popular county export.

The farm now has a Freewatt 50kw system installed, which will power the milking machines for the cows, cheese making equipment and refrigeration units every year.

The energy produced by the system is enough to power 14 homes for the year, and will save the farm around 22 tonnes of CO2 each year.

Tim said: “We had been thinking about solar power for some time but we wanted the best technology and to work with a company we trusted and Freewatt was the obvious choice.

“Even though the weather has been dull since the panels went up the electricity they are generating is already outperforming our expectations.”

Freewatt Managing Director Julian Patrick said: “Most farmers can really benefit as they use quite a lot of electricity and have either roofs or ground space available.

“As a local company we are particularly proud that we’ve helped a company that is highlighting the quality of Lincolnshire food and promoting the name of the county across the world.”

Lincolnshire Poacher is a well-loved brand across the UK and even in the US, and can be found in supermarket chains such as Waitrose and Sainsbury’s.

Chef Jamie Oliver is also a fan, and uses the cheese in his new restaurant, Union Jacks, as part of his British margarita, the Margaret.