Background
When the Scottish Government set out its vision for agriculture in March 2022, it set out an ambition to “transform how we support farming and food production in Scotland to become a global leader in sustainable and regenerative agriculture.” The Agriculture and Rural Communities (Scotland) Bill, which was introduced in September 2023 and is currently being considered in the Scottish Parliament, sets out that the “adoption and use of sustainable and regenerative agricultural practices” is one of four overarching objectives of agriculture policy.
The Scottish Government’s ‘Agricultural Reform Route Map’ adopts the following definition of regenerative agriculture:
“Regenerative agriculture is a collection of farming practices with a focus on renewing and conserving soils, landscapes and ecosystems. The method supports nature and social justice in rural communities alongside agricultural outputs. It draws upon decades of scientific and applied research on agriculture and ecology. Key practices include minimising soil disturbance, and maximising crop diversity. Another approach is to integrate livestock and arable farming more closely.
“The goals of regenerative agriculture include: improving animal welfare, increasing climate-resilience of production, capturing carbon in soils and vegetation, enhancing water quality and supply in the landscape as well as supporting thriving biodiversity and ecosystem health.
“Regenerative agriculture recognises that each farm has different soils, climate, managers, and history. For that reason, there is no definitive list of methods or actions. Instead, farmers and crofters decide the best approaches to achieve desired outcomes. Their choices need to be supported by practical training to select and use these methods effectively.”
But what might this look like in more detail? SPICe spoke to agricultural ecologist, Dr Lorna Cole, to find out more.
Dr Lorna Cole is an Agricultural Ecologist at SAC Consulting, which is part of Scotland’s Rural College (SRUC). She has been researching sustainable agricultural systems for many years and currently works on the ground with farmers as part of the Food and Footprint Team. Among many other things, she has worked on projects for the Scottish Government’s strategic research programme, and led research for Climate X Change on the potential for ‘agroecological’ approaches in Scotland. Her time is funded by by SusCrop ERA-NET/Defra – under Collaborative Landscape planning for Enhanced Agrobiodiversity and Resilience (CLEAR) and Rural & Environment Science & Analytical Services Division of the Scottish Government.
Below, Dr Cole answers three key questions:
- What is regenerative agriculture?
- What does regenerative agriculture mean to you?
- How might Scotland become a ‘global leader’ in these practices?
As with all guest blogs and contributions, what follows are the views of the author, not those of SPICe or the Scottish Parliament.
What is regenerative agriculture?
‘Regenerative agriculture’ does not have one single definition, which means that people’s perceptions of what regenerative agriculture is differ.
From a narrow perspective, regenerative agriculture is sometimes associated with Gabe Brown’s five principles of soil health. Gabe Brown is a US farmer, author, and proponent of soil health whose principles are:
- maintain living roots,
- keep the soil surface covered,
- minimise soil disturbance,
- integrate livestock into the system, and
- promote diversity.
Many of these principles are, however, primarily relevant to arable farms. Grassland systems already have continual year-round cover; livestock are an integral part; and soils remain largely undisturbed (particularly in upland systems). Consequently, taking this narrow view lacks relevance to much of Scotland’s farming systems (i.e. 80% of Scottish agricultural land is grassland).
There is a risk that linking regenerative agriculture to a set of prescriptive management practices also immediately creates an abrupt division – farmers are either conventional or regenerative. However, a wider interpretation of regenerative agriculture is to view it as a flexible, farmer-centred approach that is underpinned by the farmer’s knowledge of their land, and their system. Regenerative agriculture then becomes a toolkit of management actions that work with nature to optimise ecosystem functions and reduce inputs. Farmers can select from this toolkit depending on their needs and desires. All farms therefore fall somewhere on the continuum between regenerative and conventional agriculture.
So, what does regenerative agriculture mean to you?
For me, regenerative agriculture is a holistic approach to farm management that focuses on restoring and enhancing the natural ecosystem processes that underpin agricultural production – specifically, energy capture and transfer, nutrient and water cycles and species interactions (e.g. natural pest control, pollination). Regenerative agriculture should also transcend the farm gate to include wider aspects which are integral in building resilience into our rural economy – food sovereignty, shorter food chains, fair pricing, and supporting and encouraging knowledge exchange and learning.
Regenerative agriculture isn’t simply a return to traditional low input farming practices which in some instances could decrease yields – potentially impacting on food security. If yields are unduly compromised, we run the risk of simply offshoring emissions and biodiversity loss to other countries. Regenerative agriculture should therefore draw from both innovation and ‘agroecological’ principles (more on what this is below). For example, ‘mob grazing’, where livestock are grazed for short bursts at high densities and grass is given long rest periods allowing the grass to grow tall, mimics natural grazing systems and is thought to enhance grass utilisation and soil health. The use of plate meters to monitor grass growth allows farmers to model different scenarios to further optimise the use of grass.
I see regenerative agriculture as more of a concept, or even a movement. ‘Agroecology’, on the other hand, is the science that underpins regenerative agriculture. In fact, it is the science that underpins a range of farming concepts, including ‘integrated farm management’, organic farming, and agroforestry which all aim to take a holistic approach to farming. Agroecology draws on both ecological and social concepts to design food systems that reconcile environmental, economic, and social goals. Agroecology focusses on enhancing the ecosystem processes that underpin production, whilst ensuring resource use efficiency. It strongly draws on human and social values such as fairness, tradition, and equity, and recognises the importance of food sovereignty and healthy diets. As such, the Scottish Government’s definition of regenerative agriculture strongly reflects agroecological concepts.
Agroecological approaches, such as regenerative agriculture, put significant emphasis on optimising ecosystem health. Healthy ecosystems support a wider diversity of species, and these species act as an insurance policy helping to buffer against environmental change. Healthy soils with high organic matter take up and hold water more efficiently, helping to reduce the impacts of drought. More diverse pollinator communities, ensure that pollination can happen in many different weather conditions. Fundamental to restoring ecosystem health is to maintain and enhance wildlife habitats on farms. This could mean restoring peatlands, regenerating hedgerows, or creating buffer strips along rivers and streams to protect watercourses from pollution or run-off.
Semi-natural habitats (i.e. habitats that are modified by human activities yet still retain native wildlife) on farms provide a range of ecosystem services that expand beyond the farm gate. Peatlands capture and store carbon, they mitigate flooding and provide habitat for biodiversity. The wider societal value of these habitats is becoming increasingly recognised and emerging natural capital markets may provide a vehicle to support farmers to maintain and enhance these natural assets.
There are a number of different farming approaches and systems which use agroecological principles. ‘Regenerative’ systems are one of these. As noted above, other approaches include organic production systems, integrated farm management, low-input systems and agroforestry. These systems are not mutually exclusive, and an organic farmer is likely to be low input and they may consider themselves to be a regenerative farmer.
The infographic below illustrates some of these systems and practices.
How might Scotland become a ‘global leader’ in these practices?
Farming systems that adopt agroecological principles – such as regenerative agriculture, organic systems and agroforestry approaches which aim to work with nature – are underpinned by scientific evidence. Looking forward, we need to build on this body of evidence to ensure that agroecological farming systems are profitable and resilient to shocks and disruptions (political, social, economic and environmental). Recent collaborative research SRUC undertook for Climate X Change (Scotland’s centre of expertise connecting climate change research and policy) highlighted the potential for agroecological farming to tackle the climate and biodiversity crisis whilst maintaining agricultural productivity and building resilience.
Transitioning to any agroecological approach can require significant investment in infrastructure, and with ecosystems taking time to respond to management actions, there is often a delay before benefits are realised. Farms therefore need the financial capacity to buffer the economic costs of transitioning. Furthermore, while agroecological approaches typically do not use a lot of inputs (like pesticides, fertilisers, feed supplements), they require land managers to develop their knowledge. With knowledge at the heart of agroecological approaches, it is vital to embed agroecology in agricultural courses, and to provide life-long opportunities (e.g. peer-to-peer learning and demonstration farms). Trial and error is often needed to adapt practices to specific geographical locations and farming systems and sharing information is crucial. With increasing uncertainty in weather patterns, input costs and markets, building resilience into our food production systems through agroecological approaches is key to the future of Scottish agriculture.
Research and field trials are typically short-lived and have historically focussed on optimising production, highlighting a need to explore how agroecological approaches can maintain outputs whilst minimising inputs. For example, research could help to:
- Deliver long-term trials to explore how the adoption of more regenerative agricultural practices influence crop yield, and the stability of yield.
- Identify the optimum species to include in multi-species grasslands, for different geographical locations, soil types and farming systems.
- Include low input systems into crop variety trials to identify varieties that yield well under such systems, spring-boarding focus from yield to profit margin.
- Determine the optimum management of margins along field edges to enhance the delivery of multiple benefits (e.g. natural pest control, pollination services and carbon sequestration and storage).
- Determine how alternative grazing and reduced soil cultivation practices (e.g. minimum tillage, direct drilling) influence soil carbon, and water uptake and retention.
- Determine how agroecological farming approaches influence the taste and nutritional value of food.
For the industry to reconcile climate, biodiversity, and food security goals, it is vital that management actions are driven by scientific evidence and that this reaches the people on the ground in appropriate ways.
Scientists often focus on publishing in academic journals and presenting at scientific conferences. These vehicles are great when it comes to strengthening knowledge within the scientific community, however, they can be inward facing and don’t necessarily result in change. Researchers and farmers need to collaborate – to ensure that research findings are accessible to the farming community, and that they are viable and practical to implement on the ground. Research should also be driven by what the industry really needs to know. Researchers, farmers and policymakers should therefore work together to co-design and deliver research – and this is increasingly happening (e.g. the Innovative Farmers Field Labs, AHDB Strategic Farms, Soil Regenerative Agriculture Group (SRAG) – Farming For a Better Climate, and through SEFARI knowledge exchange).
There are a variety of existing and future options to fund the transition to nature and climate positive farming. Agri-environment and climate schemes, and nature restoration funding provide one such vehicle. Collaborative approaches where farmer clusters work together, or result-based schemes where payment depends on the outcomes realised provide innovative approaches which could maximise benefits. The labelling or certification of agroecological approaches (e.g. Pasture for Life, Organic or LEAF Marque) could be further expanded, together with a greater focus on shorter supply chains and buying local could help increase the market value of agroecological produce. This, however, requires consumer demand and willingness to pay. Policies to encourage the purchasing of agroecological produce in government run institutions, such as schools and hospitals, or green taxes, could increase market viability.
The wider food and drinks sector is becoming increasingly aware of the role they play in tackling the climate and biodiversity crisis. Some are recognising the natural assets that exist on farms, their reliance on these assets, and the role they play in protecting these assets. Global governance agreements are also requiring businesses to act. Targets agreed at the COP15 (15th Conference of Parties to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity) include a requirement for transnational companies to disclose and mitigate against biodiversity related risks and to “provide information to consumers to promote sustainable consumption patterns”. Nature positive farming initiatives which restore ecosystem health will have a clear role to play in achieving this target and we are already seeing pledges from the food and drinks sector. Nestle, for example, have pledged to source 50% of their key ingredients from regenerative agriculture by 2050 and some farmers are already seeing financial incentives to adopt agroecological approaches.
Scottish farmers are great stewards of the land and maintaining and enhancing the long-term health of this land is key for most farmers. It is what their livelihood depends on. Embracing agroecological approaches and new technologies will ensure that going forward Scottish agriculture continues to supply our nation with good quality food, whist restoring ecosystem health, and building resilience into our food production systems.
Dr Lorna Cole, SAC Consulting
(Background section and interview questions: Anna Brand, Senior Researcher, SPICe Research)
Cover image credit: Image by Ronja Stienen from Pixabay