Biomass & Farming Businesses host Business Secretary

Vince Cable, Michale Moore and John Seed discussing the use of Renewable Energy on farms
Vince Cable, Michale Moore and John Seed discussing the use of Renewable Energy on farms

Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills Vince Cable MP and Secretary of State for Scotland Michael Moore MP visited a growing farm-based biomass energy business on Saturday (11th May) to discuss the challenges facing farmers looking to embrace renewable energy technologies.

Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills Vince Cable MP and Secretary of State for Scotland Michael Moore MP visited Topling Ltd on Saturday while they were attending a meeting to discuss the challenges facing farmers looking to embrace renewable energy technologies.

Topling Ltd was established in 2012 by Berwickshire farmer and bioenergy specialist John Seed and businessman Steve Jones to produce, supply and install biomass boilers and heating systems for rural markets. John, who runs family farming business Woodend Farming Partnership at Duns in the Scottish Borders, had previously installed a biomass boiler and saw the potential benefits of such systems for other farmers, such as drying grain and conditioning livestock.

During their visit the Secretaries of State had the chance to tour the farm and view a 950kW boiler that Topling is manufacturing specifically to meet the emission and efficiency targets under the terms of the Renewable Heat Incentive.

Dr Cable said:

“It was great to see that there are farm businesses in the Borders which are thriving, diversifying and creating jobs for local people and I assured the group that I would take action on the points we discussed during the meeting.

“I want to thank everyone involved in the visit for the warm welcome I received, particularly John and Louise Seed, for their insights and hospitality in hosting the meeting.”

Mr Moore said:

“Here in the Borders we have some fantastic local farm businesses which are successful across the UK and further afield. I have no doubt that the meeting on Saturday was extremely useful for all concerned and I look forward to continuing my discussions with Vince and those who attended to ensure we get the best possible deal for businesses in the Borders.

“I also want to thank John and Louise Seed for hosting the visit.”

John Seed said:

“We were delighted to welcome Vince and Rachel Cable with Michael Moore to Woodend and for the opportunity to show them how it is possible to make a farm like this more resilient by installing biomass heating, solar and wind power. They were also very interested to see the new Topling Boilers that we are now installing.”