COMPANY HISTORY
Smith’s Country Cheese is an award-winning gouda, cheddar, and havarti cheese maker, located in Winchendon, MA, which have been winning bronze, silver, and gold medals in some of the largest cheese competitions in New England and across the U.S.
The owner, Dave Smith, relies on old-fashioned family traditions and hard work to produce his award-winning cheeses. The secret is dairy fresh milk. Dave’s Holstein cows are milked by machine three times a day, producing an average of 75 lbs of milk.
To achieve true farmstead cheese, all of the fresh milk is added to the cheese vat just minutes after the last dairy cow in the herd is milked. This allows for superior quality and taste that cannot be copied by factory-produced cheese.
THE CHALLENGE
Dave manages his farm based on old-traditions, so it is no surprise that he is a strong advocate for sustainable and green practices. Dave’s goal is to reduce his facility’s carbon footprint and energy consumption by 50 percent through a combination of energy efficiency and solar solutions.
THE PRISM SOLUTION
The first step was reaching out to National Grid and Prism Energy Services to discuss energy- and money-saving solutions. After a thorough site evaluation, Prism recommended high-efficiency fluorescent lamp and ballast replacements for Smith’s Country Cheese’s inefficient incandescent lighting fixtures.
THE BOTTOM LINE
The energy efficiency improvements have made a big impact on Dave’s bottom line. The total project cost was estimated at $5,033. Prism worked with National Grid to provide Smith’s Country Cheese incentives on the total installation cost of the project. Dave received a 70% incentive on the job, reducing the cost to only $1,258. With an estimated savings of $1,218 per year from the more energy efficient lighting, the business will be cash-flow positive in only one year.
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