{"id":40,"date":"2025-01-01T20:06:00","date_gmt":"2025-01-01T20:06:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/?p=40"},"modified":"2025-03-12T21:15:05","modified_gmt":"2025-03-12T21:15:05","slug":"first-of-its-kind-fuel-cell-project-generating-electricity-from-dairy-waste-in-fresno-county","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/index.php\/2025\/01\/01\/first-of-its-kind-fuel-cell-project-generating-electricity-from-dairy-waste-in-fresno-county\/","title":{"rendered":"First of Its Kind Fuel Cell Project Generating Electricity from Dairy Waste in Fresno County\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Bar 20 Dairy, a Shehadey family-owned and operated business in Fresno County, received $3 million in funding from the state incentive Dairy Digester Research and Development Program<\/a> (DDRDP) in 2019, to implement a dairy digester to capture methane. The California Bioenergy dairy digester and Bloom Energy fuel cell technology have been installed at Bar 20 Dairy and are now capturing methane and generating renewable electricity without combustion.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"California
California Department of Food and Agriculture Secretary Karen Ross speaking at the Bar 20 ribbon-cutting ceremony.<\/em>\u00a0<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

“When I was young, my grandfather told me that we make milk for people\u2019s children,” said Steve Shehadey, owner of the dairy farm. “That has always stuck with us on the farm. We can\u2019t offer anything but our best to the children and the families who buy our milk. Today, that also means doing what we can to help clean the San Joaquin Valley air and to be part of a climate solution.\u201d\u202f <\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"\"
Gas treatment equipment at Bar 20.\u00a0<\/em>\u00a0<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Data collected over the year after its implementation show that the installation of a dairy digester has helped the dairy cut emissions by nearly 374,390 metric tons of CO2<\/sub> equivalent.  This first-of-its-kind fuel cell technology is powering BMW electric vehicles throughout California providing clean power to over 17,000 EVs per year, as well as an onsite microgrid for dairy operations. This new innovative technology provides critical methane reductions to help the state meet its climate goals and provide local air quality benefits while furthering the State\u2019s ambitious clean transportation goals.  <\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"\"
Fuel cell array at Bar 20.<\/em>\u00a0<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

\u201cDigesters are a great solution to address climate issues in California. This project would not have been possible without the DDRDP grant. The dairy is now working with H2B2 to provide additional dairy biogas to produce renewable electricity that is used in the production of hydrogen transportation fuel\u201d, said Steve Shehadey, owner of the dairy farm.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Shehadey\u2019s consider this project to be one of several ongoing investments in climate-smart dairy farm practices. The dairy also continues to adopt new strategies to ensure the best possible animal health and comfort.\u202f\u202fIn 2020, the dairy began implementing an electric feed mixing system that significantly reduced the use of diesel for daily activities, to improve air quality. Barns are lighted with 100 percent LED bulbs, and electricity needs are offset by a two-megawatt, on-site solar array. By supplying milk to the Producers Dairy Foods plant, the farm provides fresh milk daily that helps nourish local communities.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Bar 20 Dairy, a Shehadey family-owned and operated business in Fresno County, received $3 million in funding from the state incentive Dairy Digester Research and Development Program (DDRDP) in 2019, to implement a dairy digester to capture methane. The California Bioenergy dairy digester and Bloom Energy fuel cell technology have been installed at Bar 20 … Continue reading First of Its Kind Fuel Cell Project Generating Electricity from Dairy Waste in Fresno County\u00a0<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":52,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-40","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-producer-success-story","fallback-thumbnail"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/DDRDP_5.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":26,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/index.php\/2025\/01\/23\/sustainability-spotlight-vander-woude-dairys-digester\/","url_meta":{"origin":40,"position":0},"title":"Anaerobic Dairy Digester Converts Methane to Renewable Natural Gas in Merced County","author":"Sureena Johl","date":"January 23, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Vander Woude Dairy is transforming sustainability in agriculture. This family-owned farm in Merced, California, has implemented a cutting-edge methane digester, reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 24,000 MTCO\u2082e annually and converting waste into Renewable Compressed Natural Gas (R-CNG). With state support and local partnerships, the project also creates jobs and empowers\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Producer Success Story"","block_context":{"text":"Producer Success Story","link":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/index.php\/category\/producer-success-story\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Wordpress-Featured-Image-2.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Wordpress-Featured-Image-2.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Wordpress-Featured-Image-2.png?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Wordpress-Featured-Image-2.png?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Wordpress-Featured-Image-2.png?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":337,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/index.php\/2026\/06\/01\/catching-up-with-vander-woude-dairy\/","url_meta":{"origin":40,"position":1},"title":"Catching Up with Vander Woude Dairy\u00a0","author":"Sureena Johl","date":"June 1, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"Have you ever stopped to think about how your milk or butter\u00a0actually gets\u00a0to your table?\u00a0 We recently caught up with the family behind Vander Woude Dairy in Merced, and the conversation quickly went beyond cows and equipment. At its heart, their story is about family, responsibility,\u00a0a\u00a0passion for dairy farming\u00a0and a\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Producer Success Story"","block_context":{"text":"Producer Success Story","link":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/index.php\/category\/producer-success-story\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Daryl+Simon Vander Woude","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Dary-Simon.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Dary-Simon.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Dary-Simon.png?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Dary-Simon.png?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":130,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/index.php\/2025\/07\/15\/fernandes-family-farms-four-digesters-one-legacy\/","url_meta":{"origin":40,"position":2},"title":"Fernandes Family Farms: Four Digesters, One Legacy\u00a0","author":"Sureena Johl","date":"July 15, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Fernandes Family\u00a0 The Fernandes family has been dairying in California\u2019s San Joaquin Valley since the 1920s, when Frank Fernandes came over from the Azores and started milking cows during the Great Depression. A century later, his grandsons continue to dairy and have expanded on multiple facilities\u2014 and now, they\u2019re also\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Producer Success Story"","block_context":{"text":"Producer Success Story","link":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/index.php\/category\/producer-success-story\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/image.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/image.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/image.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/image.jpeg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":279,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/index.php\/2026\/02\/02\/hilmar-cluster-making-a-real-difference\/","url_meta":{"origin":40,"position":3},"title":"Hilmar Cluster: Making a Real Difference\u00a0","author":"Sureena Johl","date":"February 2, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"Through the implementation of anaerobic digesters, CalBioGas Hilmar LLC (Hilmar Cluster), working with Hilmar dairy farmers, are leading the way toward a more sustainable future for their surrounding community. \u00a0Cluster projects consist of a hub facility for centralized operations, including the collection of biogas from multiple dairy digesters. The hub\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Producer Success Story"","block_context":{"text":"Producer Success Story","link":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/index.php\/category\/producer-success-story\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/image.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/image.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/image.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":171,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/index.php\/2025\/07\/28\/investing-in-impact-how-the-oars-team-helps-deliver-climate-solutions-on-california-dairy-and-livestock-farms\/","url_meta":{"origin":40,"position":4},"title":"Investing in Impact: How the OARS Team Helps Deliver Climate Solutions on California Dairy and Livestock Farms\u00a0","author":"Sureena Johl","date":"July 28, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"The CDFA Office of Agricultural Resilience and Sustainability (OARS) is dedicated to supporting California's dairy and livestock farmers in their efforts to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. As proof of that, the CDFA\u2019s Alternative Manure Management Program (AMMP) and Dairy Digester Research and Development Program (DDRDP) awarded nearly $25 million\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Informational"","block_context":{"text":"Informational","link":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/index.php\/category\/informational\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"A technical assistance provider and rancher are reviewing data at a dairy farm","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/AdobeStock_289583412_Preview-e1753726652620.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/AdobeStock_289583412_Preview-e1753726652620.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/AdobeStock_289583412_Preview-e1753726652620.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/AdobeStock_289583412_Preview-e1753726652620.jpeg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":63,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/index.php\/2025\/03\/28\/sustainability-spotlight-manure-management-improvements-at-triple-c-dairy\/","url_meta":{"origin":40,"position":5},"title":"Manure Management Improvements at Triple C Dairy\u00a0","author":"Sureena Johl","date":"March 28, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"This grantee Q&A was conducted by Dr. Alyssa Louie with the help of Mr. Robert Camozzi and Ms. Stephanie Dehner (Triple C Dairy) in November 2024 to develop an AMMP project profile in partnership with the California Air Resources Board Climate Investments Policy Section.\u00a0 Owner and operator of Triple C\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Producer Success Story"","block_context":{"text":"Producer Success Story","link":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/index.php\/category\/producer-success-story\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Manure collection pit and screw press separator installed as part of the AMMP project.","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Screenshot-2025-03-28-112156.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Screenshot-2025-03-28-112156.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Screenshot-2025-03-28-112156.png?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/40","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=40"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/40\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":59,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/40\/revisions\/59"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/52"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=40"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=40"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/oars-blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=40"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}