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The first 3 greenhouses have opened today. I think this is a brilliant idea dn should help to bring prices of veggies down, as well as reducing the airmiles our food travels.
I like my fresh veggies to actually be fresh, not kept in cold storage for a while then flown half way round the world before it even reaches a shop.
http://www.thanetearth.com/pdf/PR_Th...rth_080109.pdf
I like my fresh veggies to actually be fresh, not kept in cold storage for a while then flown half way round the world before it even reaches a shop.
Thanet Earth, Britain’s largest greenhouse development, starts production
Thanet Earth, the UK’s largest greenhouse complex, is nearing first phase completion with more than half a million tomato and pepper plants now planted in its greenhouses. On the eve of this milestone, a new independent report1 has confirmed the very low carbon status of Thanet Earth vegetables, based on the industry standard for carbon emissions assessment.
The project represents a UK industry first with a joint venture between three highly skilled grower organisations (Rainbow Growers, Kaaij Redstar and A&A Growers) and Fresca Group Ltd, the UK’s largest privately‐owned fresh produce company. As Thanet Earth Marketing Ltd – the joint venture company between Fresca and the growers – the business will eventually add an additional 15 per cent to British salad vegetable production, all of which will be sold locally in Kent and in supermarkets and independent stores across the country. Together they have conceived and realised a highly efficient growing model with exceptional environmental credentials.
The overall sustainability of the Thanet Earth site and the supply of product to customers was assessed by independent consultants, Bidwells Agribusiness. The key findings were:
•
Peppers and cucumbers grown at Thanet Earth have very low carbon emissions; they have a lower carbon footprint than those currently grown by all other alternative sources.
•
Tomatoes grown without lights at Thanet Earth are more carbon efficient than the Mediterranean sources studied.
•
Tomatoes grown at Thanet Earth with lights have a similar carbon footprint to UK‐grown tomatoes grown without lights or CHP.
•
The use of combined heat and power (CHP) actually contributes a negative carbon emission towards the total measured Thanet Earth carbon footprint. The power is produced more efficiently than most other forms of UK power generation because it utilises both the heat and electricity produced by the fuel.
As Thanet Earth nears the completion of its first phase, it is celebrating the planting of two of its three greenhouses ‐ the first, owned by a Dutch growers' cooperative Rainbow Growers for peppers and the second, owned by Kaaij Redstar for tomatoes. Picking will begin in early March 09. The third greenhouse, owned by A&A Growers, will be planted with cucumbers at the end of January, but with a much shorter lead time to production, picking will start at the same time as other crops.
The eight‐week‐old, 30cm high plants, raised exclusively for the project, arrived just before the Christmas holidays and were individually transplanted into the new greenhouses. It took the first two grower companies and their dedicated teams of horticulturalists just four days to complete the planting covering a massive 18 hectares, equivalent to 25 football pitches. All three greenhouses use the latest design and technical innovations to grow the crops. The tomato glasshouse, the largest in the UK at almost 10 hectares in size, will produce eight varieties of speciality vine tomatoes, all year
round. The pepper glasshouse, at just under nine hectares, will provide a full range of coloured sweet peppers for nine months of the year.
Thanet Earth, the UK’s largest greenhouse complex, is nearing first phase completion with more than half a million tomato and pepper plants now planted in its greenhouses. On the eve of this milestone, a new independent report1 has confirmed the very low carbon status of Thanet Earth vegetables, based on the industry standard for carbon emissions assessment.
The project represents a UK industry first with a joint venture between three highly skilled grower organisations (Rainbow Growers, Kaaij Redstar and A&A Growers) and Fresca Group Ltd, the UK’s largest privately‐owned fresh produce company. As Thanet Earth Marketing Ltd – the joint venture company between Fresca and the growers – the business will eventually add an additional 15 per cent to British salad vegetable production, all of which will be sold locally in Kent and in supermarkets and independent stores across the country. Together they have conceived and realised a highly efficient growing model with exceptional environmental credentials.
The overall sustainability of the Thanet Earth site and the supply of product to customers was assessed by independent consultants, Bidwells Agribusiness. The key findings were:
•
Peppers and cucumbers grown at Thanet Earth have very low carbon emissions; they have a lower carbon footprint than those currently grown by all other alternative sources.
•
Tomatoes grown without lights at Thanet Earth are more carbon efficient than the Mediterranean sources studied.
•
Tomatoes grown at Thanet Earth with lights have a similar carbon footprint to UK‐grown tomatoes grown without lights or CHP.
•
The use of combined heat and power (CHP) actually contributes a negative carbon emission towards the total measured Thanet Earth carbon footprint. The power is produced more efficiently than most other forms of UK power generation because it utilises both the heat and electricity produced by the fuel.
As Thanet Earth nears the completion of its first phase, it is celebrating the planting of two of its three greenhouses ‐ the first, owned by a Dutch growers' cooperative Rainbow Growers for peppers and the second, owned by Kaaij Redstar for tomatoes. Picking will begin in early March 09. The third greenhouse, owned by A&A Growers, will be planted with cucumbers at the end of January, but with a much shorter lead time to production, picking will start at the same time as other crops.
The eight‐week‐old, 30cm high plants, raised exclusively for the project, arrived just before the Christmas holidays and were individually transplanted into the new greenhouses. It took the first two grower companies and their dedicated teams of horticulturalists just four days to complete the planting covering a massive 18 hectares, equivalent to 25 football pitches. All three greenhouses use the latest design and technical innovations to grow the crops. The tomato glasshouse, the largest in the UK at almost 10 hectares in size, will produce eight varieties of speciality vine tomatoes, all year
round. The pepper glasshouse, at just under nine hectares, will provide a full range of coloured sweet peppers for nine months of the year.
http://www.thanetearth.com/pdf/PR_Th...rth_080109.pdf
