Kingdom Farms expansion on track for fall start

Shovels should go into the ground this fall – or earlier – on a project that its founder believes will be a model for the industry.
Will Kingma, owner of Kingdom Farms and a Region 2 director for Alberta Pork, has been working for more than two years to develop a closed-loop system that will save energy, reduce environmental impacts, virtually eliminate odor and dramatically reduce the costs of production on his 2,000-sow farrow-to-finish hog farm – as well as bringing it a new source of income.
With financial support and expert advice from the provincial government, including research of the various systems available commercially, Kingma has devised a four-part complex that will combine hog production with an ethanol plant, bio-digester and electrical generator, supported by a water treatment plant that will allow water from the barn to be recycled for the various processes in the plants.
A plant that was tested on the farm earlier had done a good job of bringing wastewater back to potable standards. However, it didn't have the capacity necessary for the processes.
Ethanol production alone requires a large volume of water and various areas of the plant will need water for cooling as well, says Kingma.
Once the water plant has been modified to meet the necessary capacity, he believes the entire operation will use only slightly more water than what he is now using in the barns.
Construction and commissioning costs are estimated at about $40 million, which Kingma readily acknowledges will take a considerable amount of outside investment.
His plan, formulated with help from project manager Tim Keating of Calgary, is to maintain sole ownership of the hog barn, which will be a major shareholder in Renew Bioenergy, the corporation set up to operate the rest of the facility.
"We've had several discussions with investors. We've talked to a major investor out of Ontario, and it looks like a very good relationship. I'm very happy with the expertise in terms of what he can bring to the table. He is in the financial end of things, but he does have lots of expertise in terms of green energy. It's going to make a very good fit for us."
Kingma has also made some inroads with a group of grain growers from Northern Alberta who are interested in growing a high-yielding wheat variety that is particularly suited for producing ethanol.
"They need a market for that wheat," says Kingma.
He is also inviting local producers to invest, including, "there is a (federal) government program specifically for producers which we are passing 100 per cent on. It was a huge undertaking to apply for, actually. But we'll pass 100 per cent of the benefit on to producers if they're willing to invest," he says.
The ecoAgriculture Biofuels Capital initiative kicks in matching dollars for participating producers, but not until after the project is built.
"When it comes to local investment and smaller investment, our approach has always been that we want the project to go forward, and then involve (them)."
Kingma sees Renew Bioenergy as a huge benefit to the nearby Town of Bentley, whose citizens have complained for decades – rightly or wrongly – about offensive odours from the farm.
There are other odour producers in the area, including the town's wastewater treatment ponds, which are closer to Main Street than the farm, says Kingma. However, fingers point to Kingdom Farms whenever there's a foul scent on the breeze, regardless of the source.
Complaints hit new heights early in December, when Kingma was forced to haul slurry from his pits through the centre of town for delivery to the farm where it would be spread.
Normally, the units hauling the sludge would have been able to take a different route. This time, however, there were no options for the haul, which ran steadily for more than two weeks.
While he had spoken with as many as the residents as possible along the haul route and received the blessings of most, there was still plenty who got their backs up, including the mayor and council, who passed a bylaw prohibiting any further manure hauls.
Kingma says he had never had to haul through town before and hopes it never has to happen again, because he doesn't know what he would do to comply with the bylaw.
Operations at the new complex, once it's up and running, should dramatically change the complexion of manure hauls from the farm, says Kingma.
Liquid manure will still be produced, but it will be more highly concentrated and much less odourous. Because of the increased concentration, it will also take fewer loads to haul, he says.
Overall, Kingma believes Renew Bioenergy will provide significant benefits for the Town of Bentley, whose population of just over 1,100 people all live within three kilometers of the farm.
Besides virtually eliminating daily odours, the plant will provide 20 new jobs along with those that are already available in the barns, he says.
Once all the systems are in place, Renew Bioenergy and Kingdom Farms will have a mutually beneficial arrangement, including the sale of co-products from the ethanol plant and biodigestor as well as the sale of the electricity the ethanol will be used to generate.
Distillers dried grains from the plant will be used to supplement pig feed and the farm will also be supported through its investment in the plant, says Kingma.
"I'm getting excited. There's days when I'm tired and it's been a long push. But it seems like we're at the cusp of where you can actually see something happening, not just all the (work) behind the scene. Once it goes to move forward, then things will happen very quickly," he says. •
—By Brenda Kossowan