Grignon Positive Energy Program: 25 Farms in a System-Scale Continuous Improvement Approach

The Grignon Positive Energy Program, developed at AgroParisTech’s experimental farm in Grignon, is a five-step continuous improvement framework that targets primary energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions at the farm scale while maintaining economic margins and human nutrition contribution. Between 2006 and 2013, it achieved a 34% reduction in energy use and a 15% cut in GHG emissions per liter of milk. Transposed to a network of 25 French farms, it helped contain rising feed costs and delivered a 13% energy use reduction per liter of milk at GAEC La Robinais. The method combines inventory of technical options, ex-ante optimization via PerfAgroP3, action planning, implementation, and ex-post monitoring.