Community Supported Grazing
Community Supported Grazing (CSG) is an arrangement where local groups, landowners and other stakeholders contribute to keeping grazing animals. There are various models in use and many have structures and practices in common with Community Supported Agriculture (there is more on CSAs, including case studies, at

Conservation grazing is the most common catalyst for CSG. Some important habitats (such as flower rich grassland) need grazing to maintain biodiversity – without it the land turns to scrub and special species are lost. With community support it can become viable to graze livestock on this land. The Grazing Animals Project is a source of information about conservation grazing at

Who does it and why?
Community Supported Grazing might involve landowners, farmers, local people and volunteers, community organisations, councils and conservation bodies. Benefits might include:

  • Access to the outdoors, for people who do not otherwise have access to land or the rewards of a farming lifestyle
  • Enabling grazing of land that would otherwise be unused
  • More local food
  • Support for small family farmers
  • Rental income from land that is otherwise not commercially viable, or maintenance of land, fences and barns
  • To maintain traditional farming practices, landscape character and rare breeds
  • To learn farming skills through training or by helping in a group
  • Better access to local meat
  • Cheap lawn mowing (eg in council parks)
  • A stronger community, where people know each other and work together
  • To provide the right habitats for wildlife.

Different arrangements
Communities can support grazing in several different ways. The most suitable arrangement will depend on the needs and interests of the people and land involved. In different existing schemes, communities offer:

  • Volunteer time, eg to check animals daily
  • A secure market for specially produced meat
  • Capital, eg to buy land or stock
  • Skills eg website design for meat sales.

In most schemes, there is a partnership between several stakeholders, particularly volunteers, a conservation body, the farmer and the landowner.

Community Grazing Models

  • Community Supported Agriculture scheme (CSA): An examples is Stroud CSA , which is owned and run by a co-operative of 200 consumer households who share the running costs of a farm. The consumer co-op rents 50 acres and employs three farmers for a wage. The CSA produces a weekly vegetable box as well as beef, pork and lamb. The co-op members demand that the farmers keep the land to very high environmental standards, especially the grazing land. In return the farmers are paid a secure wage, even in a poor season.
  • Lookerer Schemes: trained volunteers check a farmer’s animals to enable marginal land to be grazed, eg Brighton’s volunteer shepherds, This scheme has trained more than 70 volunteers to undertake daily checks on animals owned by a farmer. It began as a conservation scheme on downland but now the council have extended the scheme to urban areas to reduce mowing costs.
  • Grazing Charity: A charity set up to maintains a conservation grazing flock. For example Sussex Pony Grazing and Conservation Trust: This charity has 54 semi-wild Exmoor ponies. The species is indigenous and endangered and the horses graze an AONB. Volunteers help with animal care as well as running the charity.
  • Community Grazing Group: A group of neighbours care for grazing animals. For example Thrupp Sheep Share, where five households share responsibility for looking after four rare breed animals each year. They graze a field belonging to the parish council, next to an Area Of Outstanding Natural Beauty, which was unused and scrubbing over. The farmer who provides the animals each year also provides advice about their care.
  • Financial support scheme: This could include a community scheme to buy grazing land for community benefit or financial support for an ethical enterprise, in the form of loans or shares. For example when a young farmer in Yorkshire wanted to establish a new flock, she had access to land, skills and enthusiasm but no money to buy her first animals. 30 people loaned her £50 each for a year. After a year when the first meat was produced, lenders had their money returned plus interest paid in meat. Access to capital is often a barrier for farmers and community support can make a real difference. In other schemes local people support farmers by committing to buying meat in advance or by paying in advance.
  • Area-wide network: For example, Morcambe Bay Local Grazing Scheme In some areas, several organisations and farmers work together to improve access to land and manage a habitat, sometimes using a mobile herd and a landscape-wide conservation plan. Isolated pockets of habitat make species more vulnerable, co-ordination helps. Good networking in an area is valuable, as well as a contact list or online resource to match land to stock keepers. Co-operation can lead to shared marketing or specialist near and shared equipment.

Which animals are used?

Any grazing animals may be used including horses, sheep and cows. Particularly for conservation grazing, it is important to select the most appropriate animals. Different breeds have different grazing habits. There is information about breeds here:

Issues to consider:

  • Volunteer safety and insurance, especially where volunteers handle animals
  • Animal welfare, especially where amateurs are responsible for stock
  • Clear agreements between volunteers, farmers and landowners
  • Regulations about killing animals and handling meat
  • Regulations about moving animals, especially cows in TB areas
  • Access to stock keeping expertise
  • Good conservation advice about grazing regimes
  • Restrictions and opportunities from farm grant schemes
  • Cost of fencing, water supply, machinery and animal housing
  • Poor financial returns for small scale stock keeping
  • Finding a market for small amounts of meat
  • Finding suitable land and getting a lease or licence (see
  • Choosing the most suitable breed.

Getting started
A community grazing scheme needs a landowner, stock owner/ farmer and community group. In most places these groups are not well networked. A new scheme also needs an initiator, who contributes work, takes risks and helps shape a new arrangement.

At the start of a scheme you will need to identify and approach landowners, community organisations and farmers, bring them together and get them talking. You might speak to not-for- profit landowners such as the National Trust or councils. You might need to speak to private landowners who are harder to identify, try the Land Registry or persistent efforts with word of mouth, asking neighbours about who owns land.

You might find sympathetic small farmers at the farmers market or running a farm shop, though small holders might not have a public outlet. Many will use the local farm supplies outlet to buy feed etc. so try a notice there. Conservation bodies might know farmers in their area and might offer support to a new scheme eg the AONB, Farming and Wildlife Advisory Group or Natural England.

Community groups to approach might include a local CSA, Transition group or Ramblers Association. Once you have drawn up a good mailing list, you could try a well-run public meeting, where you propose some ideas, ask for a response and see whether you can form a working group to draw up plans.

ENDS


Community Supported Grazing. Version 1, 2014 p1