Regenerative rangeland management farmers in Spain: enthusiastic among a great diversity in farming conditions

Abstract

Regenerative Rangeland Management (RRM) is emerging as one of the most promising approaches to achieving sustainability of animal production at economic, social and environmental levels. The current bottleneck in RRM is a slow adoption rate, as the farmers’ views are still poorly studied and considered. We conducted individual surveys with 33 Spanish RRM farmers that collected multiple variables regarding general characteristics of farms, productive parameters, rangeland management and opinions around perceptions. We performed associative tests in order to detect the most important drivers of economic profitability and personal satisfaction. Among a wide diversity of farms, we found no features or management types associated with higher profitability, but rather a link to the level of intensification and degree of experience. About 93% of the farmers were mostly satisfied with RRM, even though they face difficulties–highlighting bureaucratic ones. To overcome such hurdles, we encourage improving the dialogue between farmers, researchers and institutions. This is the first state-level study on RRM in Spain, and one of the first analyses collecting farmers’ perceptions on this topic.