Recognition for the environmental sustainability efforts of Under Sun Acres makes the University’s Food Services even more proud of its partnership with the Leamington greenhouse operator, says executive chef Paolo Vasapolli.

The company has been supplying peppers to campus kitchens, prompting the cooking staff to explore ways to use the local produce — from stuffed sweet peppers to spicy fajitas. It also has been working with researchers from the UWindsor Faculty of Engineering on projects to reduce dependence on carbon-based fuels and deliver leading-edge technology to remote locations, as well as providing capstone assignments for senior engineering students.

Now owner Chris Del Greco is featured in a video by the Cogeneration Channel for installing an electrical generation plant onsite, and using heat that would otherwise have been wasted to warm the 24-acre greenhouse.

“Buying local is the greener choice, saving the environmental costs of transport,” says Vasapolli. “Under Sun Acres is proving its commitment to sustainability. We’re lucky to have access here in Windsor-Essex to some of the most sophisticated agricultural suppliers in the world.”

The cogeneration plant runs at 94 per cent efficiency and won support from a provincial green energy program. Watch the video: