Talk about pigs in clover.

Visitor attraction Cannon Hall Farm at Cawthorne has installed air source heat pumps to the pig farrowing building to keep the animals warm with underfloor heating. The system was installed by Sheffield-based electrical and renewable energy specialist Norcroft Energy.

Farmer Roger Nicholson said: “We were looking for a more economical and environmentally friendly way to keep our pigs warm. We spoke to Philip at Norcroft Energy and installing air source heat pumps seemed like a great solution to help reduce our running costs.”

Philip Mosley, managing director at Norcroft Energy, said: ““This was a rather unusual job for us as not many heat pump installations have been completed in pig sheds. The biggest challenge was getting the floor temperature correct.”

The heat pump requires electricity to operate, but for every unit of electricity it uses it can create the equivalent of three or four times that in heat energy.

Cannon Hall already has a large solar PV installation which will contribute towards the running of these heat pumps.