Premier Foods has unveiled a new 2.2MW solar mega-farm at its Carlton bakery site, due to save 468 tonnes of CO2 emissions annually.
The £2.1m solar array will provide up to 70% of the 1,000-person Mr Kipling factory’s peak electricity demand, slashing both emissions and electricity costs for the site.
Made up of 3,500 panels, the array was installed on 2.9 hectares of disused land over two years, and will power everything from mixers and packaging machinery to lighting.
“Our Carlton Bakery was the largest purpose-built bakery in the world when it opened in the 1970s, and it remains the biggest bakery in the UK,” said Premier Foods ESG director Nick Brown.
“This investment ensures it’s part of a more sustainable future. By generating more of our energy needs on site, we’re not only reducing our carbon footprint, but making our operations even more resilient.”
Premier Foods has a Science-Based Targets Initiative (SBTi)-validated target of 67% emissions reductions by 2030 for scopes 1 and 2, and aims to reach net zero in its own operations by 2040.
In the year to 29 March 2025, Premier Foods was responsible for 73,000 tonnes of CO2e emissions. The company’s solar farm will cut about 0.6% of this total.
Premier Foods intends to make a 25% reduction in emissions for scope 3 by 2030.
“It’s also positive that the solar farm has the capability to potentially export electricity back into the local electricity grid, when we are producing more electricity than we need,” said Brown. “This project is a key step in helping us deliver on our Enriching Life Plan commitments to cut emissions and reach net zero – delivering real environmental benefits for the local community and our business as a whole.”
The installation came as part of a wider programme of solar investments across Premier Foods’ sites, including two £500k arrays at its Stoke bakery and Ashford noodles factory.
Carlton Bakery manufacturing director Steve Morton added: “We’re proud Carlton is playing a part in making food manufacturing more sustainable. The whole team is excited to see the solar panels go live. Carlton has been part of the community for over 50 years, and over that time the site has changed a great deal – this is the next really exciting step in its story.”
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