The year-round berry supplier completed a large solar project at its Plant City headquarters.
Sunshine doesn’t just make plants grow.
Wish Farms, an international grower and year-round marketer of strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, raspberries and pineberries, announced the completion of a large solar project at its Plant City headquarters. The entire project, which adds to an existing solar array, consists of more than 2,100 panels covering 80,000 square-feet of warehouse roof space and parking lot covers, is expected to produce 1.6 Gigawatt (1,600,000 kilowatt hours) of energy per year.
That’s enough juice to power 177 Florida homes for an entire year.
The decision to go solar is becoming increasingly popular among businesses and corporations, providing financial and environmental benefits.
“Our warehouse facility has a significant footprint with around 100,000 square feet of refrigerated space, so moving to solar is the right thing to do from an environmental perspective,” said PR Manager Nick Wishnatzki. “Not only will it save 36,000 tons of CO2 from entering the atmosphere, but there will also be a significant cost savings over the life of the system.”
It’s anticipated to cover 75% of the yearly electrical use in its warehouse. The system also feeds nine electric car-charging stations at their headquarters, as well as fourteen electric forklifts and pallet jacks.
It shouldn’t be surprising that an agricultural business is interested in alternative energy solutions. “In many ways, farmers were the first environmentalists. They had to take care of the land so it would take care of them,” said Wishnatzki. “We are proud to continue that tradition by utilizing twenty-first century technology to make a difference for future generations.”
Its defined mission, after all, is making the world a better place. “It feels good to think of how our process will come full circle,” he said. “Berries are grown by the help of the sun at our farms, and then they are cooled by using power generated from the sun.”
For more information, visit wishfarms.com.
