Current federal regulations for organic animal feed are not sustainable. While they try to regulate what they eat, these regulations do not do enough to protect the animals, our resources, and the environment. According to the U.S. Organic Federal Standards, it is still acceptable to have a cow's diet made up of 70% of corn or other crops, as long as they are grown organically (e-CFR). However, corn increases the acidity of a cow's stomach and creates diarrhea, liver diseases, and weakens their immune system (Meeter, 2015). It is also important to note that cattle are designed to eat grass. From this, we can see that cows are better off with a grass based diet. In addition, using less corn and other crops to feed cows would significantly reduce the amount corn needed and we would then require less farming. Changing the way of dairy farms in America is necessary so that we can keep cows healthy and happy, as well as feed the earth and protect the environment.
Since the Mesozoic Era, herbivores have been moving around to graze on open fields eating until the grass is gone (Teague et al, 2015). Then they move on to the next grassy area, allowing the grazed land to rest and replenish itself. This coexistence between grassy ecosystems and grazing wildlife was best shown with giant herds of bison only 150 years ago before the global expansion of major cropland (Frank et al, 1998). AMP grazing, also known as rotational grazing, strives to imitate this natural pattern. Grazing cattle are rotated through small paddocks for short amounts of time. This allows for grass regeneration and enhanced soil nutrition by itself (Standard Soil).
There are countless indirect benefits to AMP grazing. When our sustainability certification is achieved by adopting the practice of rotational grazing, your pastureland will have increased soil infiltration, increased water conservation, decreased runoff, and overall water quality improvement (Park et al, 2017).
In order to yield the best results from AMP grazing, cattle raisers must have knowledge on biophysical processes. Specifically, they must know how to "manipulate and adjust" these processes to maintain the success of every facet of their operation (Teague et al, 2013).
Since AMP grazing mimics a dynamic pattern that occurs in the wild, these sustainability standards attempt to reflect that. Every pasture is different and rotational grazing must be adjusted for what works best for the cows, the land, the profits, and more.
There should be a ratio of one cow (and calf) per 140-4400ft2. Where your livestock fall on the range depends on weight, whether or not the cow is producing milk, whether or not the cow has a calf, grass productivity, and other relevant factors.
The majority of pastureland must consist of native grass.
3a. Cows should rotate paddocks every 3 days at most.
3b. The duration of AMP grazing is March 15-October 31 for the following states*:
California**
Colorado
Connecticut
Delaware
Idaho
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Maine
Maryland
Massachussetts
Michigan
Minnesota
Missouri
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada***
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New York
North Dakota
Ohio
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
South Dakota
Utah
Vermont
Virginia
West Virginia
Wisconsin
Washington
Wyoming
* These standards do not necessarily apply to Alaska. See Section 3e.** Applicable counties are Colusa, Del Norte, Humboldt, Lake, Lassen, Mendocino, Modoc, Nevada, Placer, Plumas, Shasta, Sierra, Siskiyou, Sutter, Tehama, Trinity, and Yuba.*** Applicable counties are Churchhill, Douglas, Elko, Eureka, Humboldt, Lander, Pershing, Storey, Washoe, and White Pine.3c. For the states and counties not mentioned in Section 3b, the duration of rotational grazing will be year round.
3d. During winter times (November 1-March 14) for Section 3b states and counties and during especially dry and hot times for Section 3c states, cows may be fed supplemental feed to maintain the level of nutrition they receive from being grass-fed.
3e. Alaska's required grazing period is April 15-September 15. However, depending on climate, they may have their cows graze for the duration of the U.S. Continental grazing period.
4a. Corn and corn-based feed will not be included in supplemental cow feed.
4b. Acceptable sources of supplemental feed include:
In order to understand the necessity of implementing AMP farming techinques and to learn the correct methods, all American dairy farmers must go under training and education in order for them to be able to sell milk.
1. Each dairy farmer that has not gone under training for AMP must go to four sessions before they are able to sell milk. These education sessions must be taught by a certified instructor and sponsored by and the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Listed here will be the topics for each session:
2. After first certification, dairy farmers are certified for three years before they must attend more classes to regain certification. In order to be re-certified, farmers must only attend a review session after their last certification has expired. Farmers have sixty days to renew their certification.
3. Dairy farms that have practiced AMP grazing for three years before implementation of this education program will be grandfathered in and do not have to particiapte in the inital education classes. Their certfication will last for two years.
4. A presentation of your certification must be shown every time before you sell milk to a vendor. Vendors cannot accept milk from a farmer presnting an expired certificate that is past the sixty day mark
AMP grazing practices call for more human interaction and labor. Therefore, we have major concerns for the conditions of the workplace and the welfare of the employees. The rules and regulations stated in the "Treatment of Workers" page on this website will be strictly enforced on all farms connected to AMP grazing for cattle.
"AMP Grazing." Standard Soil. 2019. Web. <http://standardsoil.com/our-approach/amp-grazing/>.
Douglas A. Frank, Samuel J. McNaughton, and Benjamin F. Tracy. "The Ecology of the Earth's Grazing Ecosystems." BioScience 48.7 (1998): 513-21. CrossRef. Web.
"Making Sense of the Many Systems of Rotational Grazing." The Pasture Project. 2016. Web. <http://pastureproject.org/pasture-management/rotational-grazing-systems/>.
Meeter, T. (2015, January 20). Avoiding acidosis in beef cattle. Retrieved from https://www.drovers.com/article/avoiding-acidosis-beef-cattle
Park, Jong-Yoon, et al. "Evaluating the Ranch and Watershed Scale Impacts of using Traditional and Adaptive Multi-Paddock Grazing on Runoff, Sediment and Nutrient Losses in North Texas, USA." Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment 240 (2017): 32-44. Entomology Abstracts. Web.
Teague, Richard, Bill Grant, and Hsaio-Hsuan Wang. "Assessing Optimal Configurations of Multi-Paddock Grazing Strategies in Tallgrass Prairie using a Simulation Model." Journal of Environmental Management 150 (2015): 262-73. Civil Engineering Abstracts. Web.
Teague, Richard, et al. "Multi-Paddock Grazing on Rangelands: Why the Perceptual Dichotomy between Research Results and Rancher Experience?" Journal of Environmental Management 128 (2013): 699-717. MEDLINE. Web.
"What Do Grass-Fed Cows Eat In Winter?" Brady's Idaho Beef. 2017. Web. <http://www.bradysbeef.com/grass-fed/what-do-grass-fed-cows-eat-in-winter.html>.
Williams, J. Craig, and Marvin Hall. "Four Steps to Rotational Grazing." Penn State Extension. Jan 1, 1996. Web. <https://extension.psu.edu/four-steps-to-rotational-grazing>.
Claire Collier and Jimmy Hurley