Washington apple grower saves money by saving electricity

A Washington apple grower is enjoying the fruits of new energy savings, thanks to the Bonneville Power Administration’s Energy Smart Industrial Program. Honeybear Growers in Brewster, Washington, with assistance from Okanogan County PUD, used the ESI program to upgrade its facility for more efficient operations.

Honeybear is a leading grower and developer of premium apple varieties. Improvements and upgrades included new automated packing lines, updated refrigeration controls, new flume pumps with variable frequency drives for washing produce, and new fast-acting doors. Okanogan PUD said the upgrades will save about 152,985 kilowatt-hours per year – enough power for nine average local homes. With funding from BPA, the PUD rewarded Honeybear with an incentive check, based on energy savings, for nearly $42,000. 

“Incentive funding from BPA allows the PUD to help our community in a powerful way that makes a difference,” says Kim Johnson, Okanogan PUD’s Energy Services Coordinator. 

BPA provides engineering expertise and funding to its public utility customers. The PUDs manage these incentive programs to bring energy-saving projects to fruition throughout the region.

Thanks to the ESI program, new packing lines now automatically separate apples based on size and color and can finish them off in multiple customized bags for customers at more than twice the previous volume. The Honeybear upgrades have also made working conditions better for staff, who work in a brighter, cleaner building with many new automations that make their duties more efficient and trouble-shooting easier.