April 1, Loon Lake, MN – Over 40 people gathered at a Central Region Clean Energy Resource Team (CERT) event at John Smith’s farm outside of Loon Lake to see his latest invention and livestock—solar-powered pigs. Twice as cute and fast as normal-powered pigs, these sun-powered porkers are the latest technology to hit the Central MN Region.
“We call them Sun Swine, and their energy efficiency is just incredible, “says Farmer Smith. “We wanted to give folks the opportunity to come out and ‘kick their little legs,’ see how they function on sunny and cloudy days.”
“CERTs works with communities across Minnesota to identify and implement energy efficiency and renewable energy projects, and to enjoy the savory taste of bacon if they so choose,” says Sarah Hayden, former Central Region CERT Coordinator. “We hope that solar swine like these will reduce energy costs and help utilities reach their goal of 20% of pigs either solar or wind-powered by 2030. Local ‘Porkplugs’ like Farmer Smith are leading the way.”
It could not have been a sunnier day in Loon Lake, MN at the Smith Farm. Children were chasing curly solar-powered tails all over the pig pen at this family-friendly gathering while their parents chewed the fat about the high-tech swine operation. Attendees learned that this is not the first time renewable energy has been used to enhance farm animals, but it is by far the cutest application (see photo above).
Think this is neat? Well, it is April Fools’ Day, so don’t go getting your tail curled if you don’t see one of these porkers anytime soon. But luckily there’s other great stuff happening!
