A £160,000 fleet of 'green' go-karts is helping Folly Farm wave the flag for sustainability.

The attraction is the first of its kind in Wales to upgrade its popular outdoor go-karts to sustainable, electric models.

The 18 karts on the family-friendly Follystone racetrack were funded through the Welsh Government’s Economic Resilience Fund Phase 3 - a £300m support package to help businesses rebuild and recover from the effects of the pandemic and protect Welsh jobs.

The karts were built by Rhyl-based family business, Formula K, which supplies leisure attractions all over the world.

The order, which was placed during the height of the pandemic, helped Formula K to bring back staff who had been furloughed since the shutdown of the tourism and leisure market.

Royston Badham, operations manager at Folly Farm, said: “Our go-karts here at Folly Farm have always been our most popular attraction - aside from the animals, of course.

“Replacing our petrol go-karts with electric ones was an easy decision. The cars run on batteries which are charged using solar power. Solar panels on our fairground roofs already power many of the attractions on site, as part of our ongoing commitment to sustainability.

“The new greener go-karts will reduce our carbon emissions, as we are no longer using petrol and what’s more, they’re much quieter than the old models which is an added bonus.

“We were pleased to work hand in hand with another Welsh business, Formula K, who have made the upgrade a smooth and easy process for us, delivering our order during challenging times.

"We’re excited to offer our visitors the chance to race in the new cars this summer.”

Dan Liddle, managing director of Formula K, said: “Folly Farm has been a long-standing customer of ours for around 20 years.

"We installed the original track and we’ve enjoyed joining them on their journey in helping them upgrade to a newer, more sustainable attraction.”

The electric go-karts are Folly Farm’s next step in its commitment to sustainability.

Since 2016, the attraction has held the Green Key award, an internationally-recognised standard for environmental responsibility across the tourism industry.

In 2017, Folly Farm invested £700,000 in biomass heating, saving 700 tonnes of carbon emissions annually.