What is regenerative grazing management?

Grazing management can drive positive or negative outcomes in all aspects of farming systems. As regenerative grazing approaches have gained interest, many kiwi farmers have learnt lessons the hard (and sometimes expensive) way.

The information below summarises the collective knowledge and insights of 13 farmers with experience developing regenerative grazing systems, to help other farmers avoid some of the common pitfalls when experimenting with different grazing strategies, and ultimately achieve better results faster.

If you prefer to listen rather than read, the webinar recording below presents a summary of this information, and includes a Q&A session with three of the 13 farmers who contributed their knowledge and insights to this resource.

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Defining regenerative grazing managment

Regenerative grazing management can be defined as a grazing system that improves all outcomes that are considered important in a specific context. These outcomes usually include soils, pastures, animals, people, profits, environment, etc.

There are practices and processes commonly associated with regenerative grazing. However, like any tool, these can be mismanaged or used inappropriately, resulting in poor outcomes. As our soils, climates, pastures, livestock and people are diverse, your grazing management approaches need to be adapted to each specific context to be effective.

We asked our 13 farmers what the purpose, goals or benefits of regenerative grazing management are. This is what they came up with.

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Purpose, goals and benefits

Regenerative grazing management can bring more or better..

• rooting depth

• captured rainfall

• nitrogen fixation

• soil health and ecological function

• green grass grown

• photosynthesis and nutrient density

• livestock performance

• effective area of farm in production

• animal health

• wildlife

• joy and connection

• observation

• resilience

Regenerative grazing management can result in less…

• external inputs and costs

• stress on animals and people

• pugging and soil damage

• reliance on ‘band-aid’ fixes

Regenerative grazing management can create balanced or optimal…

• productivity

• soil nutrients

• seasonal pasture growth distribution

• feed quality and quantity in winter

• colour and vibrancy of the farm

Strip grazing deferred grass early summer leaving good soil cover and even manure distribution

Boundary fence showing impact of different management - rotational grazing on the left, set stocked on the right

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In this article