Otter Creek Bakery installs solar panels

This fall, Otter Creek Bakery, located at 14 College Street, joined the town’s green efforts and installed solar panels on top of its roof. Growing up in eco-conscious families, both Ben and Sarah Wood, the bakery’s owners, have wanted solar panels for years. With the current tax rebate incentives, the two were recently able to make their green dreams a reality.
Using a company called Gro-Solar, the Woods decided to install photo-voltaic panels, which generate power that contributes directly to the bakery’s total energy usage. To see how much energy these solar panels are generating, visit Otter Creek’s website. Though solar panels are an expensive investment, the Woods are confident that the payoff is worth the cost.
“It’s really not all about the money,” said Sarah Wood.
As one of the town’s pioneers in the installation of solar panels, Otter Creek Bakery is now encouraging other companies to follow suit.
“We’re hoping that other businesses will join our efforts in making an impact in their own usages and taking advantage of the greenest power available,” she said.
The Woods also hope their new solar panels will not only reflect their passion for nature, but will showcase their building, situated in the center of town.
Otter Creek Bakery’s solar panels, however, are just another part of the shop’s environmentally friendly attitude. Ever since the Woods started their business 25 years ago, they have been avid recyclers, supporters of local producers, and careful not to waste.
“We never put food scraps in our dumpsters. They all go to local farmers for animal food or compost,” said Sarah. “We did this [composted] ourselves for many years, but found it more efficient to supply others.”
The bakery also conserves power by concentrating their cooking times to minimum time tables and keeping close watch on thermostats and water usages. Furthermore, the Woods also own a big home garden that produces flowers, herbs and vegetables.
“We do a lot of canning,” said Sarah. “I made a number of the baskets in the shop and Ben has done the majority of the woodworking, as well as all of our own maintenance and upkeep.”
As if this is not enough, the Woods also have free-range chickens, and occasionally forage for mushrooms, wild berries and leeks to use in their food. Care is the key. Trained by European chefs, the couple was instilled with this unique sense of care from their foreign advisers.
“[It’s about] caring where your food comes from, how it’s grown, raised and prepared, as well as using as much of it as possible from start to finish,” said Sarah.
As the Otter Creek owners have illustrated to the College and to the town, caring is an important model to live by, both in terms of the environment, as well as in every day life.