Regenerative Agriculture
Regenerative agriculture strives to work with nature rather than against it. Regenerative agriculture is more than just being sustainable. It is about reversing degradation and building up the soil to make it healthier than its current state. Although regenerative agriculture doesn’t have a specific recipe, you may see many regenerative farmers and ranchers doing the following:
- Planting crops using no-till, which minimizes disturbance to the soil.
- Incorporating cover crops and other diverse mixtures of forage species into monoculture crops and perennial introduced grasses.
- Decreasing use of fertilizers and pesticides.
- Using adaptive multi-paddock grazing (AMP, or adaptive grazing) — moving cattle and other pastured animals (sheep, goats, turkeys, bison, pigs) through smaller sections of the overall land and allowing grazed land adequate rest and recovery.
A major goal of regenerative agriculture is to make actual, measured improvements to soil health. This creates a ripple effect of positive benefits across the land and for the farmer or rancher’s profitability.
Regenerative Agriculture provides a number of benefits to both farmers and ranchers which directly and positively impact our (and our pets) food supply.
- Building the soil through increasing organic matter (decomposed matter) increases biodiversity.
- Regenerative agriculture makes soil healthier and more drought and flood resistant.
- Increasing soil fertility reduces and / or eliminates the need for fertilizers.
- Soil can act as a natural water filter as well, which creates a cleaner environment, improving water and air quality.
- Increases are seen in the number and variety of species on the land, including native grasses and forms, birds, insects, earthworms, deer and other wildlife.
- Grazing animals on land also helps rejuvenate the land through carbon sequestration. Plants have the ability to take in carbon from the air and store it in the soil with the help of soil microbes. Livestock stimulates this form of sequestration.
Perhaps equally important is that farmers and ranchers become more profitable when they take care of the soil, creating an environment where their animals are healthier, their crops are more resilient, and creating more consistent and productive operations. It also allows more biodiversity in the crops raised and the diversity of animals used when rotating pastures.
Regenerative agriculture is management based on working within ecological principles. Ecological principles recognize that all ecosystems (including individual farms and ranches) function through four interconnected processes, commonly called the four ecosystem processes.
- Energy Flow
- Water Cycle
- Nutrient Cycle
- Community Dynamics
We need to have living plants actively growing as much of the year as possible. Life breeds more life, which is good for soil health and for profitability. This makes for a healthier world for all. Farm Hounds is a brand that understands that and we are proud to carry them at The Big Bad Woof.
Check out some of the regenerative farms that partner with one of our favorite treat makers, Farm Hounds.
Referenced from the Noble Research Institute