Hormel Foods plant provides solar array to offset 15 percent of energy
- Hormel Foods Corporation and IGS Solar have declared the completion of the solar energy project in the Hormel Foods Swiss American Sausage Company facility in Lathrop, California. The completion was celebrated in a Flip the Switch Event at the production facility, which produces an assortment of pepperoni and salami for foodservice pizza toppings.
IGS partnered with HOLT Renewables to set up the solar array, which includes roughly 2,000 panels built on both the roof and ground space. The project is estimated to generate approximately 1.2 million kilowatt hours (kWh) annually - enough to provide over 15 percent of the plant's yearly power consumption.
They're very happy to announce the completion of the project, as stated Tom Raymond, director of ecological sustainability in Hormel Foods. As a worldwide branded food business, they put great emphasis on reducing their ecological impacts. This project supports their ecological sustainability objectives and is just another example of their dedication and support of renewable energy.
IGS and HOLT Renewables worked hand in hand with Hormel Foods to deliver this project that offers meaningful energy savings to the corporation. IGS Solar will own, operate and take care of the array. The business is helping Hormel Foods to incorporate solar production into its own energy portfolio when helping the organization better manage the long term energy costs for its own buildings.
Along with this endeavor, Hormel Foods additionally supports the renewable energy markets by subscribing to community solar gardens at five production locations, such as a co-sponsorship with Westar Energy for its initial community solar garden near Wichita, Kansas, in which the company manufactures all its Hormel Natural Choice bacon products.
The business also recently announced a virtual electricity purchase agreement for wind energy. After the wind energy project is finished in 2020, the business will become powered by almost 50% renewable energy.