Farming
tonnes of crop production
different types of crops
total number of animals at closing stock
of arable crop area are minimum/no-till
“To be a regenerative farmer, you need to have the right mindset.”
- Rasmus Christoffersen, Chief Operational Officer
What is farming with nature?
As farmers, we are aware of the impact we have on the environment, and we are determined that our impact will be a positive one. We want to build up and regenerate our farms. Therefore, we have dedicated ourselves to farming in harmony with nature. We are committed stewards of our land, on a journey to find ways that allow us to work in this rewarding way.
We strive for a symbiotic relationship with nature, and we keep investigating how we can leverage the many tools that nature provides, such as employing insects and birds as natural pest control or planting companion crops to suppress weeds.
Working with regenerative farming practices, we are learning that we can be a part of the complex, symbiotic biological systems of nature. Farming with nature is significant in everything we do. It embodies our commitment to exploring and integrating innovative farming methods which could prove to be the solution to farming’s many challenges, such as water retention and soil erosion.
Solitary tree in sunflower field at Pagiriai Farm, Lithuania
Sheep grazing clovers in Latvia
Pesticide-free corn after hairy vetch cover crop at San Ignacio farm, Uruguay
Bee in avocado orchard in Peru
Country manager, Lithuania
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Spongy, sweet-smelling soil
Through regenerative farming principles we continuously set out to support the most valuable asset we have: our soil. As farmers, we are dependent on a healthy soil ecosystem, and consequently continual improvement of our soil is deeply ingrained in how we farm.
The six principles of regenerative farming
1. Minimise soil disturbance
2. Maximise crop diversity
3. Armour the soil surface
4. Maintain living roots year-round
5. Integrate livestock
6. Know your farm
Drone map with identified weed highlighted in light green
Reducing inputs through innovation
In order to reduce our inputs, we need to be innovative and think differently. Not only in terms of the machinery and technology we use in our fields, but also in our land management practices. We conduct field trials on our farms across all countries and collaborate closely with several companies to facilitate the development of new technologies.
hectares of waterbodies and wetlands
irrigated hectares
Water is precious
Water is a precious resource. Nothing lives or grows without water. While rising temperatures intensify hurricanes, droughts and wildfires, another crisis is unfolding, under our feet and out of plain view: the aquifers are not being replenished.
The warmer world causes evaporation of more surface water, leaving less to percolate through the ground to reach the aquifers. At the same time, rainfall from above is less predictable and snowpacks are generally shrinking, feeding the rivers less water.
All this leaves communities, towns and farmers an incentive to pump more groundwater to make up the difference. Draining the aquifers that filled up over thousands of years seems inevitable. As farmers, we are utterly aware of the increasing scarcity of water, a situation aggravated as rising temperatures require more water for plant growth. We take the situation extremely seriously and manage our water as sensibly as possible.
“When the well’s dry, we know the worth of water” - Benjamin Franklin
Irrigating field in Lithuania
Water use
We irrigate 9,318 hectares across Argentina, Australia, Lithuania, Peru, Romania, Uruguay and USA. Irrigated area equals 19% of our total production area. In the fiscal year 2022/23, we applied 37,794 megalitres of water to our fields and orchards.
SPRING certification
For our fresh fruit and berry production, we hold the SPRING certification. The Sustainable Programme for Irrigation and Groundwater Use (SPRING) certification is an add-on to the GLOBALG.A.P certification. It entails best practices in water management and an annual water audit. Currently, we hold SPRING certification in Peru and Romania.
Irrigation pump in Romania
Water reservoir in Romania
Collecting surface water
To adapt to the challenges, it is essential to capture excess surface water during times of heavy rainfall and store it for use in times of drought or below-average rainfall. The easiest way to collect excess surface water is to build a dam across a natural depression such as a valley. The dam holds back water that would otherwise flow through the valley, creating a reservoir of water. This option does come with the trade-off that these areas often contain natural or semi-natural habitats such as woody vegetation or grassland due to the topography being difficult for cultivation.
At the same time, we create more permanent water habitats that support other types of biodiversity. And we always secure a continuous flow of water running beneath our dams.
Draining and recycling water
Adverse weather events are becoming more frequent and more severe due to climate changes. A strong rainstorm can off-load significant amounts of water, sometimes more than the soil can hold – or faster than the soil can absorb it – hence flooding the fields. Consequently, a good drainage system becomes increasingly important. Drained water is led to a holding facility, like a lake or reservoir from which the water can be sourced from at a later stage.
Installing drainage in future hazelnut orchard in Romania
Water habitat at Bowood Farm in Tasmania
Water habitats
The critical necessity of water also calls for a focus on creating and protecting water habitats on our land. We feel obligated to protect water and aquatic habitats for ourselves, our neighbours and future generations. Water habitats are epicentres of biodiversity and are an integral part of our long-term Farming with Nature approach. They support healthy thriving ecosystems on our farms, benefiting both production and conservation.
Where possible, we create additional water habitats by digging shallow scrapes of variable size, shape and depth, forming diverse aquatic habitats for a variety of animals and plants.
Currently, water habitats make up 2.7% of our total land area, which means that we have 2,800 hectares of water habitats.
Wildlife monitoring, Romania
Wildlife monitoring, Romania
Bird monitoring, Romania
megalitres water applied
hectares irrigated
Efficient use of water resources
In Uruguay and Argentina, we are using contour landscaping in our cropped fields to improve rainfall usage. Shallow berms of soil are added on the field to obstruct the natural path of run-off water. Not as dramatically as a dam would do it, but the berms cause the water to be gently derailed, slowing it down so that much of the water soaks into the ground instead of rushing off. This yields two great benefits: more water is absorbed in the soil, and less field erosion occurs, which is always a risk when water rapidly rushes over soil.
Contour banks in a field in Uruguay
Irrigating our pistachio orchard at Burrel Ranch
Irrigation
Often, the quantity and timing of natural rainfall are not optimal for farming, hence a need for effective water management. To supplement natural rainfall, we irrigate with groundwater, surface water or retained rainfall; depending on what is locally available. Irrigation stabilises and increases yield, ensuring the farms’ ability to endure extreme weather conditions like prolonged drought. Irrigation also improves nutrient use efficiency as plants are more efficient at taking up nutrients when the soil is moist. On our cropped land, irrigation enables us to increase the number of crop rotations per year as harvest can be brought forward.
of total arable area is irrigated
Irrigation over corn field in Uruguay
breeds of sheep
breeds of cattle
We raise our livestock outdoors
For us, animal welfare is always a top priority. We raise healthy and ethically treated animals. Our sheep, cattle and horses are open-range and grass-fed, grazing on extensive native or seeded pastures, or fodder crops such as kale, beets, lucerne, clovers and vetch, all year round.*
As part of our regenerative agriculture strategy, we are increasingly integrating animals into crop and seed productions by grazing residues and cover crops.
*Except in Latvia, where sheep are required by law to live inside during the harsh winter period. And in Romania where we keep our cows with new-born calves indoors, to protect them from predators and extreme weather.
sheep on our farms
beef cattle
dairy cows
Counting merino sheep at Mt Elephant farm, Australia
Original Black Aberdeen Angus
We rear black Aberdeen Angus in Romania, Argentina and Uruguay. In Uruguay, we breed them entirely on natural pastures and finish them on seeded pastures. They spend their entire lives roaming the pastures as they were meant to do.
Certified Humane
We are still proud of being the first beef producers in Latin America to obtain the “Certified Humane – Raised & Handled” certification in 2020.
The programme certifies animal welfare practices at the processor’s facilities, including transport and handling. This means that the whole supply chain, from when the animal is born until it is slaughtered, operates with good animal welfare procedures.
Gaucho in Uruguay
Caring hands
Good livestock husbandry needs a dedicated, hands-on team of people living on-site, creating what we call “living farms”. We employ people who have a gentle passion for caring for animals.
We follow strict ethical practices on how we treat and handle our livestock to ensure the best animal welfare, and ultimately, the best meat, milk and wool.
Night watch for weaned lambs, Latvia
Handling cattle in Uruguay
Caring for our sheep in Latvia
"I have a special bond with Quattro."
- Renãrs Zommers, Sheep Manager Assistant