A FRUIT juice brand collected 30,000 litres of water in its innovating rain water harvesting system last weekend.

Barn Farm Drinks, based in Bradfield, will use the water stocks to water the fruit crops such as raspberries, blackberries and blackcurrants on its 143 acre farm.

The company is run by husband and wife team Craig and Gail Williamson.

Craig, founder of Barn Farm Drinks, said: “Rain water harvesting is just one of many environmental measures that we have on the farm so while wash-out weekends aren’t welcome by everyone, we really appreciate the chance to put the water to good use.

“In addition to our rain water harvesting, we also have an on-site solar farm which provides electricity to 1,400 homes.”

Barn Farm Drinks collects rain water which falls onto the roofs of its factory buildings, using guttering to channel it into a 90,000-litre storage tank.

The water then goes through a fertigation system before it is distributed around the farm by a controlled water management system.