Harvesting the benefits of year-round sustainability
Hartley Farm lies close to the large Wiltshire village of Winsley near Bradford on Avon. Now in their fifth farming generation, the Bowles family have been rooted in small-scale, community-centred farming and food production since the early 1800s. Production became more intensive through the 20th century until the family began a return to small-scale, mixed regenerative farming, working hand-in-hand with the natural environment. Hartley diversified to open its farm shop in 2008 and this has grown to be biggest enterprise on the farm, with a turnover of £2.5million a year. It was the farm shop business that the family thought of when they heard about Target 2030.
The business’s environmental credentials are clear, with a mission ‘to create a place inspired by sustainability, community and the pursuit of a more balanced lifestyle’. The 125-acre farm now makes space for wildlife alongside native cattle, hens and bees, and the farm shop brings its home-produced bounty direct to customers. The shop’s large café was voted the UK’s Best Farm Restaurant in 2023 by the Farm Retail Association, impressing with their menu of seasonal and local produce, from their own and other local farms.
Richard Bowles, a director of the business, explains that the family was keen to generate green energy on site and were already thinking about installing solar panels when they approached Severn Wye to see if Target 2030 funding might be available. A business energy specialist talked them through the options and helped with contacting contractors and working through quotes.
Having decided to take the plunge, the application process proved straightforward. Topped up with a grant of £12,825, the family invested nearly £30,000 in the installation of a 78.7kWp solar PV array on one of their barns. ‘Getting the grant was the kick we needed,’ says Bowles.
As well as saving more than 35 tonnes of CO2 a year, the family’s investment will reap nearly £240,000 savings over the lifetime of the array. The benefits are already clear from their generation data.
‘Even in the winter depths our solar produces between 12 and 20 per cent of on-site use,’ explains Bowles. ‘On a sunny day we can produce up to 90% of our electricity needs.’
Farm shops can’t compete with supermarkets on price but Hartley’s appeal lies in its clear focus on sustainability in everything that happens on the farm. Its zero-carbon ambitions are as important to customers as they are to the family, feeding a growing appetite for sustainable food production and provenance. The installation of the solar array has been popular with their customer base, many of whom followed proceedings on Hartley’s social media feeds.
Encouraged by their success the family is now looking at further energy efficiency projects, including EV chargers for customers, harvesting rainwater, and increasing their solar generation and battery storage capacity.
