Solar cells provides even greener food - over 1000 solar panels will supply Mixum with its own, fossil-free energy
Cooking over 3,000 tons of pasta and 40 million eggs a year requires a lot of energy. With Motala's largest solar cell plant, Mixum will replace part of its electricity consumption with renewable energy and make food production even more sustainable. For Mixum, which is part of the Greenfood Group, it is one of several investments in a greener business.
Greenfood Group is one of northern Europe's leading players in green and healthy food. Greenfood has an ambitious sustainability agenda and is working hard to reduce energy consumption and switch to renewable electricity. Part of that change is to produce our own green electricity.
“Mixum's solar power system is an important step in our green development. Greenfood must continue to be a leader and a role model in healthy and sustainable food, and we need to constantly work to reduce our impact on the climate,” said Lisa Isakson, Head of Sustainability at Greenfood.
Cooks 3,000 tons of pasta a year
Mixum's solar power plant will be Motala's largest, producing around 300,000 kWh per year. This provides a major source of self-produced and fossil-free electricity for Mixum, which has highly energy-intensive production. The company cooks, among other things, 3,000 tonnes of pasta a year and 16,200 eggs per hour, including for the food tech company Picadeli, which is also part of the Greenfood Group.
“We have already implemented an incredible number of measures when it comes to recycling energy. For example, we only use recycled energy to heat our buildings, where we use the heat generated from our cooling systems,” said Magnus Franzén, Mixum’s Managing Director.
Energy efficiency by 40 percent
Major efficiency measures were already taken after Mixum's production facility burned down in 2009.
“After the fire, we decided to build in sustainably from the beginning of the reconstruction, which meant that we have managed to reduce our energy consumption by 40 percent. Our solar power system is now another important investment in our conversion. The next measure is to find solutions for reduced water consumption and waste management to increase resource efficiency,” said Magnus.
Magnus Franzén believes that the investment in sustainability has both increased competitiveness and improved profitability. In the food industry, sustainability requirements from customers and consumers have also increased in recent years.
“For us at Mixum, as well as for Greenfood, it is important that we are one step ahead and reorganize the business. We are completely dependent on a healthy planet to produce the basic ingredients for our products. At the same time, it is extremely important that we succeed in meeting customers' requirements and expectations. I am grateful that the Group is making major investments in sustainability, and for the knowledge and expertise that we have access to. It is valuable in our daily improvement work,” Magnus said.
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