Generate renewable energy
System: Dairy Cattle
Mainly applicable for: For electricity generation: farms with milking robots, with high and regular electricity consumption throughout the day and year. In addition, for anaerobic digestion: farms with high heat consumption (heat from biogas can be used).
Not applicable or effective for: For electricity generation: more difficult for farms with milking parlour and with herds grazing for most of the year, but possible with adaptations.
Description
Generating electricity from solar panels, wind turbines or anaerobic digestion of biomass (such as manure) on the farm, and using the electricity (and heat) for farm processes. Electricity from solar panels and wind turbines on the farm can be used for farm processes on the same farm, or sold to the grid. The anaerobic digestion process produces biogas, which can be used in various ways: combusted to produce heat, converted to green electricity using a CHP (Combined Heat and Power generator), or separated and the biomethane upgraded to replace natural gas. The factsheet on anaerobic digestion can be found under ‘Manure storage and treatment’.
Mechanism of effect
By using electricity from renewable energy sources such as sun, wind and biomass, farms can avoid carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuel combustion for electricity generation. Some CO₂ emissions are generated upfront during the manufacturing and transport of renewable energy equipment, but once operational the system emits no or little CO₂, and the initial ‘carbon debt’ is offset within a few months or years of operation. In effects shown below, only renewable energy used on the same farm is counted toward emission reductions, not the electricity sold to the grid. Additional reduction in CO₂ emission can be realized in case of electrification of vehicles and machinary (see factsheet ‘Reduce fuel use’). This solution will be less effective when renewable energy (e.g., biofuel) is used in the reference situation.
Reference situation
Average European grid mix. No battery storage, no milk robot, and no electrification of vehicles or machinery.
Legend
| ● – Small effect (<5%) | o – No effect | o – no effect |
| ●● – Medium effect (5-20%) | ● – Unfavourable effect | ? – unknown effect |
| ●●● – Large effect (>20%) | ● – ● – Variable effect (depending on farm characteristics or way/level of implementation) |
Effect on total greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions (kg CO2-eq)
| per kg product | absolute (per farm) | Level of evidence | |||
| Mean | (min-max) | Mean | (min-max) | ||
| Use home-produced wind energy | ● | ●–● | ● | ●–● | High |
| Use home-produced solar energy | ● | ●–● | ● | ●–● | High |
Effect per emission source
| Source | Manure storage | Animals | Feed and forage production | Barn | ||||
| Gas | CH4 | N2O | CH4 | CO2 | N2O | LUC | CO2 | |
| Use home-produced solar energy | ●●● | |||||||
| Use home-produced wind energy | ●●● | |||||||
*risk of an adverse effect (see ’cause of variable or unfavourable effect’)
Explanation of variable effect
Use home-produced wind energy
The impact on emissions depends on how much fossil-based electricity is replaced on the farm and the carbon intensity of the electricity in the reference scenario, which is determined by the national grid mix. Greater emission reductions are achieved when a larger share of wind energy is used directly on the dairy farm rather than exported to the grid. The self-consumption depends on several factors, including the farm’s overall energy demand, the size and energy output of the wind turbine, the availability of battery storage, and the extent to which energy-intensive activities (like milking) coincide with wind energy production.
Use home-produced solar energy
The impact on emissions depends on how much fossil-based electricity is replaced on the farm and the carbon intensity of the electricity in the reference scenario, which is determined by the national grid mix. Greater emission reductions are achieved when a larger share of solar energy is used directly on the dairy farm rather than exported to the grid. This self-consumption rate varies widely and is influenced by factors such as the number of solar panels, the availability of battery storage, and the extent to which energy-intensive activities (like milking) coincide with solar production.