The new fleet will haul raw milk from the Fair Oaks Farms dairy facilities in Fair Oaks, Indiana, to processing centers in three Midwestern states. Depending on the success of the first 42 units, Fair Oaks could lease more CNG-powered trucks, replacing even more diesel-powered units and reducing its carbon footprint even further.
Fair Oaks Farms also plans to fuel its trucks with biomethane produced from processed cow manure, and have one of the largest long-haul fleets powered by renewable energy in the country. Moreover, the company has contracted with Clean Energy to build and operate a CNG station near the dairy farm in Fair Oaks as well as one in Southern Indiana.
“If Fair Oaks Farms can demonstrate to other dairies that it is possible to produce and distribute milk in a much more environmentally sustainable way,” said Ron Festervan, national account sales executive for PacLease, “This manure-to-methane project could have broad implications not only for the dairy industry, but also for other operations that produce biological waste.”
Source: PacLease.
