The manufacturers of the Las Vegas favorites Ethel M Chocolates, Mars Chocolate North America, just recently stated that a solar power system at its Henderson, Nevada, chocolate factory will be opened.

The installation is being referred to as "garden" by Mars since the solar panels are located beside the Botanical Cactus Garden in their factory. During peak hours of operation, it provides all the electrical current required to power up the Ethel M’s plant.

The solar power system is composed of 2,112 solar panels on 4.4 acres mounted into the ground. Allegedly, the installation is the biggest of its kind among manufacturers of food based in Nevada, and it is said to be able to produce 1,258 megawatt hours of electrical current in a year. That would be equal to what 115 average households in Nevada make use of.

"At Mars Chocolate North America, we have the opportunity to make a difference in the world," stated Mike Wittman, the vice president of supply for Mars. "We are proud of the investments we are making to ensure we are using the earth's resources responsibly.  This newest solar garden moves us closer to our goals of eliminating our carbon footprint at our sites by 2040 and using 100 percent renewable energy," he added.

Such development is the second project located in Mars-owned fields which utilizes solar PV.  (If you're not familiar with these terms and it all sounds alien to you, well, let me shine some light on you. PV or photovoltaics is an approach in producing electricity by means of converting solar radiation into direct current electricity with the use of semiconductors which show the photovoltaic effect.)

A vista point within the Botanical Cactus Garden would let over 700,000 guests every year to come over and check out the new solar installation.

Mars is the popular manufacturer of well-loved chocolaty treats that include M&Ms, Snickers and Twix. Mars stated that it would get energy offsets coming from the utility in accordance with the amount of electrical current the solar panels create.

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Joanna Maligaya

Staff Writer/Content Developer at Chocolate University Online

Ever since she can remember, Joanna has always considered chocolate as the ultimate food for her soul. She believes in the saying, “9 out of 10 people love chocolate, and the 10th always lies.”

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