Sustainability

Current water practices & reasons for putting them in place

We have four large extraction lakes on site, used for our drip irrigation system on all our crops.

10 hectares of rainwater harvesting off polytunnels, which is then fed into the irrigation lakes when required.

Most of the fruit is grown in substrate. We have installed sensors in the soil and substrates, to measure soil moisture providing live data to the irrigation team. We have recently upgraded the system with individual sensors in each bag, providing live and precise data for each individual plant.

Our yearly crop / rotation plan helps ensure our water usage is balanced across the growing season.

We have a a 24-hour water supply back-up in holding tanks for any emergency requirements. This is essential to ensure crop yields remain stable.

Staff training and an awareness of our IFM approach is a priority so that the whole team have the knowledge, skills and expertise to manage our water use as efficiently and sustainably as possible.

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What impacts/effects have you seen?

The whole business is now 40% self-sufficient on water supply from rainwater harvesting techniques.
Our water meters have live data available, allowing the team to see how much water is being extracted from the lakes at all times of the day. It has also enabled us to measure water usage of the different crop varieties at different points throughout the day and on an annual basis. Access to this data ensures continuous improvement and we can benchmark year on year. It’s all about attention to detail and constantly finding ways to refine our approach.

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