Askham Bryan College Hosts Prestigious On-Farm Anaerobic Digestion and Methane Capture Summit

On Wednesday 9th April 2025, Askham Bryan College proudly hosted the On-Farm Anaerobic Digestion (AD) and Methane Capture Summit, which brought together industry leaders, policymakers, and innovators to explore the future of sustainable farming.

The event welcomed expert speakers from organisations including NNFCC, Defra, the NFU, Arla Foods, Co-op, Biolectric, Biofactory, Grow Yorkshire, the York & North Yorkshire Combined Authority, HSBC, Earthcare Technical, and Qube Renewables.

The summit highlighted the exciting potential of AD and methane capture systems on farms, across the UK agricultural landscape. Attendees also participated in discussions aimed at identifying opportunities, tackling challenges, and driving collective action to expand this vital sector.

Visitors also had the chance to take a tour and discuss about Askham Bryan College’s decision to explore AD for their farm and how they are using it to educate the next generation through their land based college and university courses. A representative from Biolectric also inputted around the technical information about the AD explaining the benefits of having one.

A special highlight of the day was Askham Bryan College being awarded the ‘Golden Cowpat Award’ for having the most efficient AD plant in Europe for January 2025.

The award was presented to Mark Gent (Director of Estates and Facilities) and Henry Abbiss (Farm Manager) by former Secretary of State for the Environment, food and rural affairs, George Eustice.

Mark Gent, said: “There are over 400 Biolectric AD plants in Europe so to be recognised as the most efficient of them all is a real accolade and testament to the colleges commitment to carbon neutrality.”

Gary Hague, UK Sales & Development Director at Biolectric said: “We were proud to present Askham Bryan College with the Golden Cowpat Award in recognition of having the highest-performing Biolectric plant across our 420+ systems across Europe. It’s a testament to their commitment to operational excellence, sustainability, and leading by example in the future of on-farm innovation.”

Dr Tim Whitaker, CEO and Principal said: “Our new anaerobic digester is providing students with valuable experience in the latest sustainable on farm practice.  The digester is providing over 22Kw of electricity per hour, enabling us to power our dairy farm, and is proving to be one of the most efficient bioelectric plants in the whole of Europe.”

The College offers agriculture courses, from Level 1 to degree level, give students the chance to explore emerging agricultural technologies that promote more sustainable farming practices.

The installation at the College , known as the Electric Cow, was made possible with a significant funding contribution by UK government, facilitated by the York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority via the Net Zero fund.

Mark added: “The Electric Cow captures methane from slurry from our 170 dairy cows and converts it into electricity which is used to power our dairy and heat which is used for hot water and heating in an adjacent educational building and student residential block and once the slurry passes through the system, it transforms into digestate which is better for our land and reduces our reliance on artificial fertilisers”.