Quality Poultry Products Goes Green with Electricity
Demand for renewable energy has skyrocketed in recent years, particularly because of the global discussion around climate change and the impacts of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases. The global attempt to shift from energy derived from fossil fuel to more clean and green sources has pushed countries to transition to clean energy economies. While Belize and the wider Caribbean region contribute less than one percent of the global emissions – there has been a move locally to explore renewable sources. Quality Poultry Products is one of the latest businesses to transition to clean power for its processing plant. On Thursday, we visited the headquarters in Spanish Lookout to find out more. Here’s the story.
Andrea Polanco, Reporting
Almost one thousand solar panels – nine hundred and sixty to be exact – cover the roof of the Quality Poultry Processing Plant and admin offices in Spanish Lookout. It’s the co-op’s way of transitioning into a renewable source of energy that is good for the environment.
Raymond Barkman
Raymond Barkman, Managing Director, Quality Poultry Products
“Everyone knows the ‘Dis Da Fi Wi Chikin’ so we are trying to go with ‘Dis Da Fi Wi Environment’ to try to activate that campaign. Obviously we want to reduce the carbon footprint and so forth as best as we can for this company and so that is how the solar came into being.”
The solar panels harness radiation from the sun and with the help of inverter technology, convert it to useable energy that Quality Poultry Products uses as electricity. This solar power system has been installed for about a week. This monitor shows important information about the system – including a measure for its contribution to climate protection, that is, how much carbon dioxide has been avoided through the use of this clean energy source.
Raymond Barkman
“We decided on a two hundred and fifty KW. It is definitely not complete. We use more than that here but we decided let’s start with this so we can get a feel of it and see if we can get the return that we are hoping for. It is probably a little over half; it is like half of what we use here. I am not sure, maybe the days have difference if there is sun or rain, but it is about fifty to seventy-five percent of what we use here. So, we can still technically use more if all goes well. They keep a record up to year to date and yes it records – the number that you are seeing there is just day and each day gets recorded so end of the year or week we can see where we stand with the CO-two avoidance.”
Andrea Polanco
“So, it is five hundred and two point six pounds in CO-two avoidance just for today?”
Raymond Barkman
“Yes, just for today.”
The cooperative’s board discussed the idea of green energy for over a year. Barkman says that from the looks of things, they will recover investments in just three years.
Raymond Barkman
“The way it looks right now the payback should be very good. It is affordable. Solar has become a thing where the price is constantly going down – it is not like most other things. It is a very feasible thing to do.”
Andrea Polanco
“And of course the benefit to the environment?”
Raymond Barkman
“Of course. This dah fi we environment, we have to protect it. I believe that it is every company to do that as well.”
Andrea Polanco
“What would you say to other companies out there who may be exploring it?”
Raymond Barkman
“I would say you can’t afford not to. That would be my advice.”
Reporting for News Five, I’m Andrea Polanco.
