Refrigeration Equipment Manufacturer Helps California Businesses Shift from Chemicals to Natural Refrigerants
PRO Refrigeration welcomes California dairy farmers and winemakers to Mocksville, NC, to observe production on the state-of-the-art PROGreen Solutions R744 (CO2) Chiller Systems.
L to R - Jim VanderGiessen (PRO’s CEO), Jeremy Vrieling (PRO), Matt Sa (Sales at SJVDE), Chris Jongsma, John Jongsma, Damon Reed (PRO), and Pablo Polanco (Frogs Leap Winery)
“Dairy farming today is all about the numbers, and the CO2 Chiller System is a bigger investment upfront,” said Chris, “our farm needs several thousand gallons of hot water each day to sanitize - the savings this system provides in natural gas alone helps justify the higher cost for the equipment.”
MOCKSVILLE, N.C. (PRWEB) July 08, 2022
Christopher Jongsma of South Creek Dairy in Pixley, CA, invited his grandfather, John Jongsma, to travel to North Carolina and check the status of his new chiller system. Chris continues the legacy of dairy farming that started in Friesland, Holland, 65 years ago milking 9 cows. Today John’s sons and grandsons have expanded the family business, climbing towards 20,000 cows served across the family's farms. Now their sights are set on increased efficiency and environmentally conscious cooling.
Chris watched closely when the first PROGreen CO2-charged chiller system was installed at his uncle’s, Bill Jongsma, dairy in August of 2021. He is excited to get an identical system shipped to California for startup this fall with the help of San Joaquin Valley Dairy Equipment.
This new system will cool the milk for his 3,900-cow dairy farm while also taking over 100% of the water heating load across the farm. Matt Sa, of San Joaquin Valley Dairy Equipment also made the trip and completed training on the system.
“Dairy farming today is all about the numbers, and the CO2 Chiller System is a bigger investment upfront,” said Chris Jongsma, “our farm needs several thousand gallons of hot water each day to sanitize - the savings this system provides in natural gas alone will help justify the higher cost for the equipment.”
Joining the group was Pablo Polanco of Frogs Leap Winery. Frogs Leap has been on the leading edge of sustainability since their inception and relies on their 100 HP PROChiller, operating on R404a, for over 10 years. Pablo’s goal was to learn more about the PROGreen R744 System as their winery searches for answers to reach their industry-leading climate goals.
“We realize if we eliminate chemical refrigerants from our winery, we have a big opportunity to reduce our carbon footprint,” offered Polanco. “It is exciting to learn that CO2 can be used as a natural refrigerant.”
“Between Carbon Reduction and increased heat recovery, the list of justifications for an R744 System keeps increasing,” added Damon Reed, who leads the PROGreen Product Group at PRO, “It is so valuable to have long-term customers like Frogs Leap to challenge us with questions that many winemakers will also be asking soon. It is great to have him here.”
About Pro Refrigeration
Auburn, Wash.-based Pro Refrigeration, Inc., is the US's leading cooling technology and equipment company for craft beverages and dairy. The company provides innovative solutions for delivering chilled fluid from –45° F to +45° F. In 2020, PRO created their PROGreen Solution Team focused on natural refrigerants and shifting away from PRO’s usage of chemical-based refrigerants. Visit http://www.prochiller.com/progreen for more information on their shift to natural refrigerants.
About South Creek Dairy
Chris Jongsma serves almost 4,000 animals on his Dairy Farm where he continues an extended family history of dairy farming that began 65 years ago. Located in Earlmart, California, this farm has been in the business of milk production since 2004.
About San Joaquin Valley Dairy Equipment
San Joaquin Valley Dairy Equipment has been providing wholesale machinery and equipment for dairy farms since 1992. They are based in Tulare, California with a secondary location in Bakersfield.
About Frogs Leap Winery
Frog's Leap is a family-owned winery dedicated to sustainable principles and committed to producing wines with balance, restraint and respect for terroir. Originally founded by the Williams Family in 1981 on a spot along Mill Creek known as the Frog Farm, today Frog's Leap makes its home in Rutherford at the historic ‘Red Barn’. Winemakers hand-craft 60,000 cases annually comprised of Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Zinfandel, Merlot, and an estate-grown Cabernet Sauvignon. Visit http://www.frogsleap.com to learn more.