The Carbon Trust has announced financial help is now available for farmers to invest in energy-saving equipment. British farmers are now eligible to apply for unsecured, interest-free loans for between £3,000 and £20,000 to help them upgrade to more energy-efficient equipment. The new funding has been provided to help the farming sector to meet the carbon reduction aims laid out the Government's Low Carbon Transition Plan. Examples of energy efficiency upgrades which the Carbon Trust loans will fund are; thermal screens, used in greenhouse horticulture, typically cost up to £20,000, and can save over £10,000 / 100 tonnes of CO2 annually; milk cooling accounts for one third of the energy consumption of dairy farms. New systems cost £3,000, and save up to £1,000 / 6 tonnes of CO2 a year; Insulation . used in field horticulture crop stores, typically costs around £17,000, and saves up to £10,000 / 50 tonnes of CO2 a year; upgrading heating and ventilation controls, in livestock farms, typically costs £3,000, and saves over £4,000 / 23 tonnes of CO2 a year; grain drying humidity controls, used in arable farming, typically costs £3,000, and saves around £1,500 / 10 tonnes of CO2 a year.
www.carbontrust.co.uk
