Jonathan Lundgren, owner of Blue Dasher Farm and CEO of the non-profit Ecdysis Foundation, says livestock integration on U.S. farms isn’t a crazy idea anymore, which has been proven in the scientific data gathered through the Foundation’s 1000 Farms research project.
Lundgren opines that farmers are almost paying for the right to farm when current commodity prices and utilization of marginal lands are factored in.
“Converting marginal cropland to rangeland and managing those pastures for animal agriculture increases a farm’s overall productivity and adds diversity of revenue streams,” he says, adding that results from the 1000 Farms project show having animals and crops together reduces fertilizer loads, pest intensity and weed pressure. “It turns those weeds into an opportunity rather than a cost.”
Adding livestock also provides the quickest way to begin building soil carbon, and intensively-managed grazing diversifies soil biology above- and below ground through the deposited feces, urine and saliva.
“Given the shrinking returns farmers receive for commodities today, you can get on board with diversification or you can go out of business. I don’t think I’m overstating that,” he says.
Under regenerative practices, cattle consume vegetation over a very short grazing period, then move to fresh forage. Behind them, the grazed pasture has been stimulated and fertilized, which increases the quality and quantity of below- and above-ground plant communities.
For more information on how integrating livestock grazing can help your farm, read Dan Crummett’s article “Boost Revenue & Soil Health by Integrating Livestock with No-Till” featured in the July 2026 Issue of No-Till Farmer.