Always the sun for Bradfield Brewery to keep producing the perfect pint

Bradfield Brewery, which is based on a farm in the Peak District and best known for its Farmer brand of beers, has applied for planning permission to fit 158 solar panels to transform its energy use.

The firm wants to install the panels on the roof of its brewery and on a storage building.

The photovoltaic panels would generate 30,000kw of electricity each year, which is the equivalent of about six family homes.

Richard Gill, a director of the brewery, said: “It fits in with our ethos of using the best and most natural way of doing things. We already use water from our own borehole on the farm to make the perfect pint. Now we can harness the sun to help in that process.”

The system, which will be installed by Hoylandswaine solar panel company Norcroft Electrical, should save Bradfield up to £11,000 per year.

Bradfield, based at Watt House Farm, has brewed more than five million pints since the first beer, Farmers Bitter, was produced in 2005.

Expansion of the brewing facility led to the decision to turn to solar power.

Its beers are sold around the country and Watt House Farm remains a working farm with sheep, hens, goats, five shire horses and two Percheron horses, China and Charlie, who are used to pull the brewery dray at events like Bakewell Show.

“It’s what they call farm diversification,” said Mr Gill.

“We are still very much a farm, but we needed to get an income from somewhere else too.”

Fitting the panels on the two roofs at the brewery should take about three weeks, Bradfield said.

It has submitted a planning application to the Peak District National Park Authority which will be considered within the next few months.

Philip Mosley, director of Norcroft Electrical, said the use of solar energy made sense as the brewery uses power during daylight hours.

“More and more businesses are seeing the advantage of using their roof space to not only save money but save the planet.

“For Bradfield Brewery it makes sense to fit solar panels because they have two large south-facing roofs.”

Norcroft has seen a surge in the number of businesses asking about the installation of solar panels, he added.