A new climate for grazing livestock

In Colombia, where the country's 25 million head of cattle occupy 80% of agricultural land, conventionally grazed pastures have contributed to severe soil degradation, deforestation and, in dry areas, have hastened desertication, according to Julin Char, a researcher at the Center for Research in Sustainable Systems of Agriculture (CIPAV) in Cali, Colombia. However, a new paradigm is emerging. Land conservation is happening alongside livestock production.