Abstract
Grazing networks are groups of farmers and ranchers who work together to increase their knowledge of forage management, pasture-based production, and farm economics. This publication covers how to begin or become a part of a grazing network, and offers advice on sustaining the network. It includes a case study.
This publication contains references to enclosures that are available in hard copy only. Please call our toll-free number to receive a copy at 1-800-346-9140. |
Table of Contents
Introduction
Grazing networks are groups of farmers and ranchers who work together
to increase their knowledge of forage management, pasture-based
production, and farm economics. Grazing networks promote a mutual
self-help approach to learning, in which each member is both
student and teacher. The members share their experiences and offer
advice to one another, organize educational events around their
common interests, and spend some time socializing. Members of grazing
networks usually find that what they learn from other farmers and
ranchers is timely, practical, and profitable. They also find within
the network a spirit of community and support that, while intangible,
many see as crucial to sustaining the life of family farms.
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Background
Farmers in New Zealand, especially dairy farmers, started forming
grazing networks more than 40 years ago. Grazing techniques developed
there, such as management-intensive grazing (MIG, or management-intensive
rotational grazing, MiRG), have become cornerstones for the grazing
networks that have taken root in the US since the 1980s. Grazing
networks now exist throughout this country and are especially active
in the Midwest, where Wisconsin, for example, claims 23 networks
serving farmers in 51 of the state's 72 counties. (1)
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Becoming Part of a Grazing
Network
The easiest way to get involved with a grazing network is to join
one. Many county Extension agents coordinate grazing networks, or
at least know of any networks active in their areas. But if there
are none, you can start one.
Most grazing networks get started simply enough, when three or
four graziers start talking about their common problems or concerns
and decide to pool their knowledge to help one another out. Reaching
others who may be interested in becoming part of the network is
usually done by word of mouth or through targeted mailings. (2)
In either case, someone must take on the job of doing the initial
leg work and coordinating the organizational meeting.
If you do not know other graziers in your area, your Extension
agent, local veterinarians, or someone at the feed store can probably
help you put together a list.
When you call people on your list to invite them to your first
meeting, be prepared to answer their questions about what you're
doing and why. Keep it simple and direct. "Farmers usually
say they attended their first group meeting because they were asked
personally." (2)
If personal or telephone contact isn't practical for you,
the next-best recruitment tool is a targeted mailing to a
list of potential members. "Targeted" is the key word
here. Try to identify farmers and ranchers whom you believe may
have an interest in managing their pastures for greater profit.
In your mailing (as well as in direct contacts), be sure to make
clear the purpose and philosophy behind the group and to include
the names of others who will be at the meeting. "Many farmers
... attended the first meeting because they knew they would have
an opportunity to meet and talk with other farmers they respect."
(2)
A lot of what it takes to host an organizational meeting is common
sense. Schedule it at a convenient time. Have an agenda that allows
for plenty of feedback from the participants. Have someone taking
notes. Provide refreshments.
One important decision that you need to make early in the formation
of your group is whether it will be open to anyone interested or
whether its membership will be limited. Both open memberships and
closed memberships have their individual strengths and weaknesses.
Networks with an open membership are usually larger than closed-membership
groups and sometimes require a more formal structure to keep them
running. Larger groups do offer a greater diversity of ideas and
experiences than those with closed memberships, and there are more
people to assist new members in understanding how the network operates.
But the diversity of open-membership groups is their greatest
strength, in the view of many who advocate them. (3,
4)
On the other hand, the larger size of most open groups, with their
ever-shifting dynamics and greater demand for coordination,
tends to make them less cohesive than smaller networks. Also, large
meetings, with their more formal structure, limit the depth in which
a topic can be discussed. (2)
The smaller size of most networks with closed membership has its
own appeal. Aside from usually having a more informal structure
and requiring less energy to coordinate and maintain, closed networks
allow their members to get to know one another better, to form strong
relationships, and to focus their activities more easily on topics
of mutual interest. As Jason Rankin, a networker from County Down
in Northern Ireland, says, "If you get ten committed members
then that is plenty." (5) One disadvantage
of a smaller group is that the number and variety of ideas within
it will be more limited. (2) Another shortcoming
is that smaller networks demand a stronger commitment from their
members. If only three members of a nine-farm network are
actively involved, the group is in trouble.
The size of your group, whether open or closed membership, will
largely determine how it functions and how much effort is necessary
to keep it vital. But regardless of size, no grazing network runs
by itself. There has to be leadership and some method of governance.
While Extension agents do act as coordinators for some grazing
networks, the "leadership should really come from within the
group . . . [and] members themselves must lead the network."
(6) "This is in fact the heart of a grazing
network: the experts are the ones doing it, and the ones
doing it are the farmers." (3)
Someone has to take responsibility for calling and running meetings,
contacting members, arranging for guest speakers, organizing pasture
walks and pot-luck dinners. In a small group, this may be
an individual or, in a larger group, a body of officers. In either
case, leadership and coordination are crucial to a network's
success.
Just as there are open (usually large) and closed (usually smaller)
membership groups, there are also formal and informal ways of running
them. Formal structures—with elected officers and meetings
run by some established rules of order—are usually better
suited to larger groups. Indeed, a very large group may require
a formal structure to avoid chaos. But not always. The Grassroots
Grazing Group (see Case Study below) still
maintains a very informal structure, even though it has grown from
its original 13 members by more than six fold. Smaller groups, on
the other hand, those with no more than 10 to 15 members, can usually
function well with just a few ground rules and someone willing to
see that everyone knows when and where they're to meet. Smaller
groups may be able to act swiftly and make decisions by consensus,
although the danger for groups making decisions by consensus is
"the tendency to make compromises just to move the consensus
along." (2)
Regardless of the method of governance your network chooses, the
person in charge has several very important obligations to the group.
Let's call the person in charge "the coordinator."
The coordinator's first (and on-going) task is to find out
what the group is interested in, what topics or problems or activities
it most wants to explore. Obviously, there will be some areas of
common concern that brought the group together in the first place,
but the coordinator must ensure that fresh ideas and new concerns
are given fair consideration. Of course, members should be free
to introduce topics or suggest activities at any time, but it is
the coordinator's role to poll the membership and find out
where its greatest interests lie. In a small group, it might take
no more than asking, "What are you folks interested in?"
In a larger group, it may be necessary to use a more formal poll,
followed by a vote.
Once a coordinator has determined what the network members want
to discuss, he or she can start setting the agendas for meetings.
This may seem no more than note taking, just a list of things to
talk about, but it serves a function critical to making meetings
go well: bringing them to a good end. Members can read a published
agenda and come to meetings prepared to ask questions or make comments
focused on the issues at hand. The agenda also helps the coordinator
keep meetings on-track and gets the members to the coffee
and cake or the pot-luck dinner they've been waiting
for a little faster.
Once the coordinator has an agenda, the next step is scheduling.
Meetings, pasture walks, guest lectures, field demonstrations—all these must be held at times when the greatest number of members
can attend. Again, common sense goes a long way when drawing up
a schedule. Don't schedule in the middle of a weekday during
haying season or when some popular community event (the Big Game,
the Mouse Milking Derby, etc.) is taking place.
The coordinator has not only to decide when things happen but also
what. Based on the interests of the members, the coordinator will
have to arrange for speakers (often from Extension, another grazing
group, or a university), set up demonstrations, and see to it that
there are activities for children at the events.
Finally, perhaps the single most important job for the coordinator
is to make sure that members get the information they need about
meetings and activities, and that they get it far enough in advance
to work it into their schedules. Telephone calls, e-mails,
newsletters, public service announcements on local TV and radio
stations, can all make the coordinator's job easier and the
coordinator more effective.
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Sustaining the Network
The members of a grazing network need to share a belief in a set
of clearly stated goals that not only address immediate, pragmatic
concern—improving pastures, boosting production, and increasing
profits for the members—but also reflect the members'
social, environmental, and personal aspirations. The success of
a network depends upon the success of each individual in it, and
vice versa. This means the network has to be more than just a forum
for practical matters; it must also be an integral part of the lives
of the members. Wayne Burleson, a grazier and Holistic Management
Certified Educator from Absarokee, Montana, says of his grazing
group, "[it is] part friendship, part support, part family,
and part business." (7) And, as a study
of the Missouri Green Hills Farm Project discovered, " ... the group's goals represent a mix of social, economic, and
environmental objectives." (4)
Shared goals and aspirations give focus and direction to the group.
They are the philosophical glue that binds network members together.
And they provide a framework of support within which members can
work to realize their individual ambitions.
The essence of grazing networks is farmer-to-farmer
learning and support. But monthly meetings or pasture walks or pot-luck
suppers aren't always enough to keep the members in touch,
especially when one of them needs help with a problem right now.
A directory of members, with phone numbers, addresses, and e-mail
addresses, makes it much easier for members to contact one another.
An e-mail listserve provides a venue for ongoing discussions
as well as fast access to information. The Grassroots Grazing Group
— which has more than 80 member-families in Arkansas,
Missouri, and Oklahoma — operates a listserve (moderated through
ATTRA) that its members use regularly. As one GGG farmer puts it:
"The listserve is invaluable in allowing me to get timely
answers to questions necessary for management of forages, nutrients,
livestock, and pests." (8)
Shared goals and ready communication are fundamental to getting
a network going, but there's even more to keeping one going.
Andy Hager, Extension agent in Taylor County, Wisconsin, who coordinates
more than 250 farms in the Northcentral Graziers Network, believes
there are three things that make a network work: mentoring, flexibility,
and creativity. (3)
Mentoring is the practice of pairing an experienced grazier with
a beginner—farmer-to-farmer learning at its
purest—and it addresses one of the common challenges that
grazing groups face: how to accommodate the different needs of both
beginning and advanced graziers. It allows new members to integrate
more easily into the group, while they at the same time reap practical
benefits from the knowledge and experience of the veteran. But perhaps
more importantly, it helps established members to "learn twice,
by teaching" (9), and keeps them involved
in the crucial agricultural endeavor of raising new crops of farmers.
"Flexibility" and "creativity" are more
difficult to quantify. They may grow naturally out of the group's
diversity or be reflective of the group's leadership. Whatever
their source, an openness to new ideas and the urge to improve upon
old ones are important qualities for sustaining the vitality of
a network. But they show their worth best in the activities that
the network sponsors.
No activity is more representative of how grazing groups work than
the pasture walk. As we'll discuss later, pasture walks can
have a lot of variety, but one general description sums them up
reasonably well: "Pasture Walks involve other graziers. They
serve as constructive critics, extra sets of observing eyes, fellow
commiserators, question-raisers, and most importantly these
people are genuinely interested—dedicated to making grazing
work better on everyone's farms." (8)
A pasture walk can involve more than just walking a member's
pasture and assessing its health, needs, and use, but that is the
core of the activity. In many grazing networks, pasture walks (and
the pot-luck dinner following them) are a major part of the
monthly meetings of the group from spring until winter.
The Grassroots Grazing Group provides its members with an outline
for hosting a pasture walk. (8) According to
the GGG literature, the following are important considerations for
a successful walk.
-
Plan the pot-luck meal well in advance and let the other
members know what kinds of dishes they should bring.
-
Be sure everyone knows exactly when and where the walk will
take place. If the location is difficult to find, provide maps
and instructions on how to get there.
-
Plan the tour to focus on successes or challenges. Have questions ready for the group concerning any specific problems you
may be facing.
-
Introduce your farm or pasture with a brief history of the place.
How long have you had this farm? When did you get involved with
controlled grazing? What are the other farm enterprises? In other
words, provide as much useful background information as possible
about how the pasture has been used in the past and how you would
like to use it in the future.
-
Have a map of the property that shows its basic features:
- soil types
- land contours
- water sources
- forage species
- special-use pastures
-
Prepare information about your fertility and grazing-management
systems.
-
If you have a lot of ground to cover, provide a hayrack or truck
to transport the group.
-
Discuss what each of you saw and thought.
-
Enjoy your meal.
In grazing networks that have been operating for a few years, pasture
walks tend to take on a certain sameness (11),
and the groups look to diversify their activities. They often invite
guest speakers (12) from Extension, the university,
or another grazing group. They may form discussion groups (13) or create problem-solving exercises
(14) that address broader farm issues such
as costs, management, or budgets. Other activities many groups use
to keep things interesting include field research trials and on-farm
demonstrations of new practices or technologies. (2)
The social component of grazing groups is vital to their sustainability.
(6, 8) Farmers have long
days, and sometimes it feels like there are eight of them a week.
Farmsteads may be far apart, and farm life often leaves little time
for a social life, let alone meeting new people. Being a member
of a grazing group not only provides farmers with practical information,
it also creates a social circle of like-minded folks who gather
regularly both to discuss their common interests and to have fun.
"There must be a balance between formal discussion and socialization,"
says Tom Wrchota, a grazier from Wisconsin, who adds, "I received
much more out of the group than what I put into it." (15)
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Case Study: Grassroots Grazing
Group
The Grassroots Grazing Group (GGG) began in 1997, with a gathering
of farmers, ranchers, and educators at the farm of John and Becky
Spain in Hindsville, Arkansas. After some discussion of their common
interests, the group made the decision to form a grazing network
and to look for funding to help support their start-up efforts.
Working through NCAT/ATTRA, GGG applied for and received an EPA
Sustainable Development Challenge Grant. In January, 1998, the 13
founding member families signed their mission statement and paid
their dues. Since then, GGG has grown to more than 80 member families.
Regular—usually monthly—pasture walks are a central
feature of GGG activities. The group will meet at a member family's
farm and, after a brief orientation by the owner, tour the operation,
looking at the pasture, livestock, and equipment. Following the
tour, the members discuss what they've observed over a pot-luck
dinner, and after dinner hold a short business meeting. Some members
have also organized field trips to The Stockman Grassfarmer Conference
and to nearby research farms. A favorite activity of GGG is to meet
at a beginning grazier's farm and discuss how best to set
up its grazing system. Three teams, each composed of both experienced
and beginning graziers, walk the new member's pasture, discuss
what they see, and draw up three different proposals for consideration.
This has proved beneficial not only to the newcomer but to the old
hands as well. They all realize how much they know and how much
they have to contribute to the group. After using this three-team
approach to help design his own pasture operation, one beginning
grazier said, "Had it not been for the things I have just
begun to implement, I have serious doubts I would have made it through
this drought."
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When Networks Break Down
Nothing lasts forever—although an argument could be made
for Spam—and grazing networks are no different. Energy wanes,
enthusiasm slackens, discord arises among the members, who complain
of lack of leadership, lack of new ideas, or lack of communication.
(6) Organizations all have their natural life
cycles and go through similar phases. (2) At
some point, any grazing network will have to face the fact that
it's just not working as well as it could, that members are
suffering burnout and are not bringing the same level of energy
and vitality to the group that they once did. (11)
A grazing network at this point in its life may be ill, but it is
far from dead.
Revitalizing a network may mean going back to basics, looking at
its stated goals or mission statement, and seeing whether these
goals still meet the needs of the members. (2)
Some networks choose to subdivide into smaller groups with specialized
interests (16), while others opt to focus the
entire network on advanced issues. (11) As
mentioned above, guest speakers, discussion groups, mentoring, and
social events can all help to pump life into a network. It's
here that the principles of flexibility and creativity will need
to be called upon.
If, despite all your efforts, the group doesn't have the
collective will to continue, accept the inevitable and disband,
taking with you all the knowledge and friendships that the network
has brought to you.
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Conclusion
Establishing and maintaining a grazing network is challenging.
It demands leadership, commitment, time, energy, and creativity.
And balancing the different needs and expectations of the members
will be an ongoing task. Being an active member of a grazing group—the only kind to be, if you expect to get the most from
it—is not a casual activity.
That hard work and dedication will, however, be rewarded. The example
of New Zealand and the growth in popularity of grazing networks
in the US is proof that they work. The educational, social, and
economic benefits that farmers discover in grazing groups far outweigh
the effort necessary to make them work.
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References
- Paine, Laura. 1999. Coordinator
survey highlights strengths, challenges of grazing networks.
Agri-View. June 3.
- Barrett, Kathy, with D. Merrill
Ewert, Ph.D. 1998. Farmer to Farmer Learning Groups.
Cornell Cooperative
Extension, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY. 20 p.
- Baker, Juli. 1997. A grazing network:
In the beginning... Pasture Talk. March. p. 11.
- Anon. 1996. New farmer network
groups and the university: Case study of Missouri's Green
Hills Farm Project. Section II: Central processes and dynamics
of the GHFP. University of Missouri. Downloaded 11 January 1998.
www.eric.ed.gov/ERICDocs/data/ericdocs2sql/content_storage_01/0000019b/80/15/0f/73.pdf (PDF / 746K)
- Rankin, Jason. E-mail posting
on graze-l Web site. Downloaded 3 January 1998.
http://graze-l.witt.ac.nz/pipermail/graze-l/1998-January/011448.html
- Cadwallader, Tom. 1999. Strengthening
farmer networks. Pasture Talk. August. p. 7.
- Burleson, Wayne. 2001. Clubs are
a new neighborhood glue.
Holistic Management IN PRACTICE. November/December.
p. 7.
- Grassroots Grazing Group. 1999.
Handout to members.
- Baker, Juli. 1997. The grazing
network: As it works... How networks grow.
Pasture Talk. April.
p. 4.
- Paine, Laura. 1999. A final look
back at grazing network survey. Agri-View. August 5. p.
1.
- Paine, Laura. 1999. Grazing networks
face challenges as they mature. Agri-View. July 8. p. 1.
- Dietmann, Paul. University of
Wisconsin-Extension, Sauk County Agricultural Agent. E-
mail posting on graze-l Web site. Downloaded 13 July 1998.
pjdietma@facstaff.wisc.edu
- Evans, Phil. E-mail posting
on graze-l Web site. Downloaded 3 January 1998. pevans@b150.aone.net.ay
- Lane, Woody. E-mail posting
on graze-l Web site. Downloaded 14 July 1998.
wlane@rosenet.net
- Wrchota, Tom. E-mail posting
on graze-l Web site. Downloaded 13 July 1998. wrchota@athernet.net
- Baker, Juli. 1997. Networks one
more time: Watching the grass grow.
Pasture Talk. September.
p. 4.
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Enclosures
Baker, Juli. 1997. A grazing network: In the beginning... Pasture
Talk. March. p. 5, 11.
Baker, Juli. 1997. A grazing network: As it works...How networks
grow. Pasture Talk. April. p. 4-5.
Baker, Juli. 1997. Networks one more time: Watching the grass
grow. Pasture Talk. September. p. 4, 7.
Burleson, Wayne. 2001. Clubs are a new neighborhood glue.
Holistic
Management IN PRACTICE. November/December. p. 7.
Paine, Laura, et al. 2000. Wisconsin's grazing networks:
History, structure, and function.
Journal of Natural Resources and
Life Sciences Education. Vol. 29. p. 60-67.
*These enclosures are available in hard copy only. Please call our toll free number to receive a copy at 1-800-346-9140.
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Further Resources
Publications
Anon. No date. Building Sustainable Farms Through Peer Relationships.
12 p. $2.00
Available by calling:
518-427-6537 or
farmfood@capital.net
Barrett, Kathy, with D. Merill Ewert, Ph.D. 1998. Farmer to Farmer
Learning Groups.
Cornell Cooperative Extension, Cornell University,
Ithaca, NY. 20 p. No listed price.
This is a guide to setting up and running groups similar
to grazing networks, with empha- sis on leadership skills and
governance. It is available from:
Farming Alternatives Center
Cornell University
Ithaca, NY 14853
607-255-9832
Hochheimer, Joanne Dvorak, with Debra Austin and Karen Juenger.
1993. Farm
Support Group Manual. Cornell Cooperative Extension. NY FarmNet,
Ithaca, NY. 13 p.
This manual discusses how to determine the best structure
for a group and how to organize meetings. It is available for
$8.00 from:
NY FarmNet
Cornell University
Warren Hall
Ithaca, NY 14853-7801
607-255-1603
University of Vermont Cooperative Extension. 1999. Farmer Discussion
Groups: Getting Started.
SARE Bulletin 4. 6 p.
Includes case studies as well as tips for successful group
interaction. It is available free from:
CTR/Publications
Agricultural Engineering Building
63 Carrigan
Drive
University of Vermont
Burlington, VT 05405-0004
Videos
The Farmer's Relevant Voice.
A video on how farmers participate in watershed protection
by developing leadership and working cooperatively. Available
for $10.00 through Cornell University.
607-255-0150 or
mb252@cornell.edu
Web Resources
Graziers from all over the world exchange ideas through graze-l.
graze-l@Vulcan.taranaki.ac.nz
Upper Midwest organic farmer networks.
www.mosesorganic.org/umord/groups.html
Farmer-to-farmer networks: effective grass-roots sharing.
www.cias.wisc.edu/archives/1996/10/01/farmertofarmer_networks_effective_grassroots_sharing/index.php
Wisconsin grazing networks: a status report.
www.cias.wisc.edu/archives/2000/01/03/wisconsin_grazing_networks_a_status_report/index.php
Enhancing Sustainable Agriculture Through Farmer Groups. A case
study of farmer cluster groups by the Kansas Rural Center.
www.oznet.ksu.edu/sustainableag/pubs_kcsaac/ksas4.htm (Link no longer active.)
Grazing Networks for Livestock Producers
By Paul Williams, NCAT Staff Writer and
Alice Beetz
NCAT Agriculture Specialist
Cole Loeffler, HTML Production
CT 166
Slot 200
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