Jessica Mathews / Michigan News Connection / news@whmi.com


Results of a new study from Michigan State University suggests farmers no longer have to choose between growing crops and harnessing solar power - they can do both on the same land.

The 25-year study of California farmland found that farmers who added solar panels, a practice known as Agrivoltaics, made more money per acre than those who didn’t.

The research shows crops and solar work together, especially when panels are placed on low-yield acres, or spots that don’t grow as much food due to poor soil or too much shade. The research shows this approach helps farmers boost income without reducing food production.

M-S-U grad student Jake Stid, report lead author, says farmers can also benefit through a system called Net Energy Metering, or N-E-M. “A return structure where farmers can directly in many cases, interconnect so they can use the electricity to offset their own needs, as well as sell excess generation, excess electricity back to the utility for a discounted rate”.

Researchers estimate that California land now used for solar panels could have fed 86 thousand people had it stayed in crops. The study looked at the trade-off between farming and solar energy, while critics warn it could worsen food security by reducing farmland.

Stid highlighted that his team chose California's Central Valley as the focus of the research due to its significant contribution to both national and global food production, particularly for a variety of orchard crops. He said “It's a really, really agriculturally valuable state - and it also happens to be a pretty water stressed state. Specifically the Central Valley has been experiencing pretty significant drought, as well as over allocation of water resources”.

Some farmers expressed concern about solar panels shading crops, affecting growth and reducing yields.

Stid says he's hoping to expand his research on solar arrays and food production nationwide, contributing to the ongoing debate among farmers on how to use land sustainably, without harming food production.

Photo: Michigan News Connection