Why Farmers Are Pairing Crops with Solar Panels

In the realm of renewable energy, a novel strategy known as agrivoltaics is gaining traction, combining crops or livestock with solar panel farms. In the United States, approximately one in ten solar farms now feature sheep roaming under the panels, providing additional shade for the animals. Moreover, the panels protect crops from harsh weather conditions and divert water to them, creating a more favorable, cooler, and damper environment that can even enhance crop yields.

The solar panels themselves also perform better in these settings, as cooler temperatures boost their electricity generation per watt of sunlight.

While the potential of agrivoltaics is vast, particularly as climate change intensifies heat stress on agriculture, the practice remains relatively new. If implemented on just 1% of available agricultural land in Europe, agrivoltaics could surpass the continent's solar energy targets for 2030. However, the adoption rate has been slow, representing only 18.4 gigawatts of energy worldwide as of mid-2025 – less than 1% of the global solar capacity.

The concept of agrivoltaics dates back to 1981 when German scientists published a paper titled "Kartoffeln unter dem Kollektor" (Potatoes beneath the collector). The first pilot project began in 2004 in Japan, a country grappling with land constraints and seeking a balance between solar deployment and farmland protection. There are three main types of agrivoltaics: horizontal, where panels face the sky, vertical, where they are placed in large rows perpendicular to the ground, and integrated, often installed atop greenhouses.

Shade-tolerant crops such as berries, grapes, tomatoes, peaches, and peppers thrive under the panels. The steel framing of the panels often doubles as trellises for these crops. Additionally, the panels prevent water from evaporating fully, creating a more humid microclimate beneficial to the soil, although humidity can sometimes introduce plant diseases.

Sheep have proven particularly suitable for agrivoltaics. Compared to cattle or goats, they are easier to manage around solar infrastructure, less likely to damage equipment, and small enough to fit comfortably beneath the panels. The practice also offers sustainable benefits, with sheep manure fertilizing the soil and the need for less herbicide due to the panels' protective effect.

For sheep farmers, agrivoltaics has transformed their economics, as they are now paid to graze their animals instead of paying to lease land. This shift presents a significant opportunity for the sheep industry, which has struggled in the U.S. since World War II.

Despite its potential, agrivoltaics has faced slow adoption. In theory, it is a win-win scenario, offering both climate mitigation and adaptation. However, various caveats and challenges hinder its widespread implementation. Not all locations are suitable for agrivoltaics; for instance, in America's arid West, yields remain the same or even increase under panels, while in the humid Midwest, shading limits photosynthesis, leading to reduced yields in maize and soybeans.

Cash crops, with their slim profit margins, are less likely to tolerate even minor yield reductions. Furthermore, the costs associated with mounting higher panels and adapting farmers' methods can be prohibitive.

Farmers require support and information from one another to fully embrace agrivoltaics. A chicken-and-egg problem exists, as many farmers cannot easily visit other farms or engage with those already practicing agrivoltaics. The tension between solar power's land footprint and farming communities' concerns about a shift from traditional farming to energy production remains a significant barrier to widespread acceptance.