Wyke Farms boss joins free energy webinar

Richard Clothier, md Wyke Farms, will join the expert seminar panel​ to discuss energy savings for food and drink manufacturers at 11am GMT on Thursday September 18.

The online seminar will explore the scope for savings, as businesses prepare to comply with new EU legislation requiring mandatory energy audits to be conducted by December 2015.

Sourcing green energy​

Clothier has built a highly successful dairy business, while committing his firm to sourcing green energy. Wyke Farms is the first national cheddar brand to be 100% self sufficient in green energy. In June, the business opened a £1.3M water recovery plant as part of an anaerobic digestion project.

The Wyke Farms boss was voted Personality of the Year by Food Manufacture Group readers last year, after building a fiercely loyal following during a social media campaign to persuade Morrisons to re-list the firm’s cheese.

The new rules – set out in the Energy Savings Opportunities Scheme (ESOS) – will require firms with more than 250 employees to undertake mandatory energy audits. But the scope to make significant energy savings is not confined to large-scale firms, according to our webinar panel.

Potential for savings​

To explore the implications of the new legislation and the potential for savings, the Food Manufacture Group has teamed up with energy consultant JRP Solutions to stage the webinar Energy Saving Opportunities Scheme: switching on to savings.

Joining Clothier on the panel will be representatives from government, the Food and Drink Federation (FDF) and JRP Solutions.

The full list of speakers will be:

• Richard Clothier, md Wyke Farms
• Martin Adams, ESOS team leader, Energy Efficiency Deployment Office
• Steve Reeson, FDF head of climate change and energy policy
• Jes Rutter, md JRP Solutions

Reserve your free place here​. The webinar will conclude with a question-and-answer session and you can put your question in advance to our expert panel by emailing zvpunry.fgbarf@jeoz.pbz​.