Environmentally Sustainable Livestock Farming

This news sheet focuses on regenerative agriculture and a new working group established and coordinated by Moredun. The term ‘regenerative agriculture’ means different things to different people, but for us, it’s about practical, profitable and sustainable methods that make sense for your land and livestock. That is why Moredun have created the Environmentally-Sustainable Livestock Farming (ELF) working group—to focus on approaches that improve animal health, welfare, and environmental outcomes.

The working group brings together farmers, vets, SQP’s, researchers and policymakers, each with their own views on how regenerative agriculture can benefit farming. From a scientific perspective, the evidence around the win-wins, unintended consequences and practicalities of widescale adoption of approaches considered regenerative agriculture is scarce and there is a clear role for Moredun to help fill these gaps.

With your support, I hope to see Moredun expand our research into these vital areas and, over the longer term, to develop a platform that explores profitable, nature-friendly livestock farming practices on a larger scale. The working group is another step closer on this exciting journey.

Agriculture faces critical climate change, biodiversity loss and food insecurity challenges. There has been an upsurge in interest in “regenerative agriculture”, which is considered a promising pathway to continue to meet future food demand while protecting and enhancing the environment.  Regenerative agriculture means different things to different people, but generally encompasses the following five key principles, to:

1. Increase biodiversity
2. Reduce soil disturbance
3. Maintain soil cover
4. Keep living roots in the soil
5. Integrate grazing animals into the farmed landscape

Despite the proliferation of regenerative agriculture discussions, there is a lack of robust scientific evidence to support the range of observations, case studies and anecdotes circulating in the media and farming press. The recent rise in input costs has made some farmers rethink their farming practices, while regenerative approaches are gaining support from consumers, policymakers, and governments.

Moredun is a trusted broker with long-standing engagement with livestock farming communities and is in an ideal position to help pivot research and to place livestock health and welfare at the centre of how regenerative agriculture addresses the biodiversity, climate change and food security issues that we currently face. Livestock health and welfare provide the foundations on which any sustainable livestock enterprise is built, and without that in place performance and profitability are compromised.

Over the last few years, Moredun has engaged with the regenerative agriculture community, leading to the co-construction of Moredun-led research projects. These projects are at the halfway point of their five-year cycle and updates detailing their progress are covered later in this briefing.

Towards this end, Moredun has set up a working group of researchers, farmers, vets, SQP’s, and policy representatives, who are actively working in the regenerative agriculture area.  The remit of the group is:

1. To identify knowledge gaps in animal health and welfare within regenerative agriculture systems and co-develop research activities with Moredun and other research partners to address these gaps
2. To ensure that the farming community has access to independent and robust scientific research to underpin their decision-making