Volkswagen has introduced a flock of 100 sheep to graze at the solar farm that powers its manufacturing plant in Poznań, Poland. Beyond keeping the vegetation trimmed in place of lawnmowers, the sheep form part of a wider research project into agrivoltaics — the practice of combining agriculture and energy generation on the same land — highlighting how industrial sites can pursue more sustainable, multi-use approaches.

Poznań University of Life Sciences is studying the flock to assess how grazing affects animal welfare, biodiversity, soil quality, vegetation and the site's microclimate. Marzena Pillich-Grońska, director of Volkswagen Poznań, said the photovoltaic farm now supports biodiversity, local agriculture and scientific research as well as generating green electricity. The solar farm was built by Quanta Energy, which shared a video of the sheep at the site. Agrivoltaics has drawn growing interest in the energy sector, with earlier experiments including crops grown beneath solar panels.