Wyman’s, one of the largest growers of wild blueberries, has partnered with ReVision Energy and REC Solar to install a 35-acre solar array on land the fruit producer owns in Washington County.

It’s one of the largest, if not the largest, solar farms in Maine hosted by a business to power its own facilities. And it’s Wyman’s latest effort to ensure a sustainable future as the family-owned company celebrates its 150th anniversary this year.

ReVision of South Portland is installing more than 17,000 solar panels on land not suitable for blueberry production in Deblois, between Ellsworth and Machias. Construction started in late 2023 and is expected to be completed by the end of this year.

The solar array is designed to generate 8.5 million kilowatt-hours of clean energy each year, offsetting more than 8 million pounds of carbon and providing 73% of Wyman’s power needs at its processing and storage facilities in Ellsworth, Deblois, Cherryfield and Jonesboro.

“For 150 years, we’ve been driven by the desire to produce healthy food, provide gainful employment and protect natural resources,” said Wyman’s President and CEO Tony Shurman. “The decision to go solar fits squarely with our ethos to do the right thing and seek a better way.”

The project is funded by REC of San Luis Obispo, California, through a power purchase agreement, so Wyman’s incurs no upfront costs for the installation, said Dan Weeks, ReVision’s vice president of business development.

Wyman’s is leasing the land to REC, will buy the electricity at a reduced rate and will have the option to purchase the array after 20 years, Weeks said.

Absent an official list of businesses that generate their own solar power, Weeks said it’s safe to say Wyman’s is one of the largest and maybe even the largest solar farm hosted by a Maine business to power its own facilities, in contrast to most other large arrays on third-party land that power various entities such as towns, schools and government buildings.

“Wyman’s is demonstrating that adopting solar energy is not a choice between environmental responsibility and what’s best for business,” said Fortunat Mueller, ReVision’s president and CEO. “Transitioning to clean energy not only safeguards our planet but also bolsters the company’s bottom line, and promotes the health and well-being of future generations.”

Based in Milbridge, Wyman’s was founded in 1874 when Jasper Wyman opened a sardine cannery as that industry was booming. Now, Wyman’s is a top retail brand of frozen fruit, including cherries, mango chunks and a variety of berry mixes.

The solar initiative is the company’s latest investment in building a sustainable future, including several research partnerships with the University of Maine. One is studying the varying impacts of rainfall and temperature on wild blueberry production.

Wyman’s also supports research on the carbon sequestration power of wild blueberry plants, as well as the use of biochar, a processed form of forest byproducts, to improve the water-holding capacity of soil.

In 2022, the company established the Wyman’s Wild Blueberry Research and Innovation Center at UMaine, a 3-acre site intended to develop innovative production techniques and train the next crop of blueberry growers.

Wyman’s also invests in protecting pollinators, which are needed to turn blueberry flowers into fruit. The company reserves 1,300 acres for pollinator habitat, provided seed funding for the Center for Pollinator Research at Penn State University, and in 2017 became the first commercial grower in the U.S. to implement integrated pest and pollinator management.

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