Utilising the food waste from cheese-making for green energy

Wensleydale Creamery, the famous Yorkshire cheesemaker who produces Wensleydale Cheese has taken a big step towards sustainable energy and waste reduction by passing on the whey permeate, a byproduct from the cheese-making process, to generate around 1 million cubic meters of biogas which will be used to generate green power for the surrounding area.

The company is teaming up with UK fund manager Iona Capital who will utilise the feedstock in a nearby anaerobic digestion facility. It is expected that this process will generate enough power to supply around 800 homes in the local area.

The anaerobic digestion facility is currently utilising waste from a nearby ice cream producer to create bioenergy. 

The remaining waste left after the biogas production process will be utilised in neighbouring farmlands to enrich the topsoil quality reducing the carbon footprint even further.

This process is not only creating green power it’s diverting tonnes of waste from being disposed of into landfill. Harnessing the biogas created as the waste breaks down for power generation rather than allowing it to be released into the atmosphere or flared reduces the overall environmental impact of the cheesemaking process.

The cycle of a locally produced milk manufactured into cheese in the same region and the waste from the manufacturing process being utilised for green power in the area creates a positive, sustainable circular economy.

Find out more about the Wensleydale cheese green power initiative: https://www.wensleydale.co.uk/blog/producing-energy-from-cheese/