Farm in harmony with nature
Challacombe Farm is leading the way in regenerative stewardship worldwide, ATHWENNA IRONS reports
ADARTMOOR livestock farm has broken new ground by becoming the first in the world to receive official regenerative certification.
Certifier A Greener World (AGW) has announced Challacombe Farm, run by Naomi Oakley and Mark Owen in the heart of the National Park, as the first-ever ‘Certified Regenerative by AGW’ producer.
This innovative certification works to provide a whole-farm assurance of sustainability, measuring benefits for soil, water and air, biodiversity, infrastructure, animal welfare and social responsibility.
Building on its successful family of leading labels, AGW’s Certified Regenerative programme is a planbased regenerative certification to give farmers, consumers and buyers confidence in reliability and impact.
Challacombe Farm, part of the Duchy of Cornwall estate and based near Postbridge, took part in AGW’s inaugural Certified Regenerative pilot cohort, a group of 50 farms across the globe that spent the last 18 months in partnership with AGW evaluating farm standards, plans and auditing procedures for Certified Regenerative by AGW, which have been under development since 2017.
As the pilot concludes, AGW is accepting public comments on the standards and will soon open the programme to new farm applicants.
At Challacombe Farm, Naomi and Mark raise a herd of Welsh Black and North Devon beef cattle and a flock of around 200 rare Icelandic and Shetland sheep. The management practices at Challacombe Farm are better for the animals and for the wider environment, and the farm was eager to take part in the new AGW programme to certify their high welfare livestock management and environmental stewardship.
Mark said: “Our goal is to raise our beef cattle and sheep outdoors on pasture, whilst conserving and enhancing the wildlife, landscape and archaeology that makes our farm such a special place. Taking part in the accreditation trial proved to be a good way of consolidating our plans to farm in harmony with nature, as well as getting external, independent feedback to help us achieve our aims.”
The Certified Regenerative by AGW certification ensures farms are meeting rigorous sustainability standards, but also foster continual improvement. Acknowledging that every farm is a unique part of an ecosystem, the core feature of Certified Regenerative is an individualized, farmer-led Regenerative Plan where producers assess risks, set goals and track progress toward their own meaningful milestones with support from qualified experts in agronomy, biodiversity and water quality, among other fields.
Wayne Copp, executive director of A Greener World UK / Europe, said that currently, most regenerative claims are “not verified at all”. The few verified labels that do exist are either “very limited” in their scope or require organic certification as a “prerequisite”, he added, thereby excluding 97% of UK farmland and farmers in conversion to organic.
Mr Copp, who runs a livestock farm in Woolacombe, North Devon, said: “While Certified Regenerative by AGW does not require organic certification, the two approaches are complementary, giving farmers a way to distinguish their stewardship practices and validate important metrics not covered under organic standards such as emissions reductions and biodiversity.
“At A Greener World, we know the collection of practices described as regenerative could have huge potential to put the brakes on — and even reverse — many of the negative impacts of intensive agriculture.
“AGW’s Regenerative certification is accessible, affordable and open to all farmers and growers. Our approach recognises that each farm is a unique part of an ecosystem, and that there is no ‘one-size-fits-all solution’ that can be applied consistently to every farm.”
“That’s why we’re so proud to launch Certified Regenerative by AGW: a food label that farmers and consumers can trust to deliver genuinely positive outcomes — on the farm, at the table and for the planet.”
Commenting on Challacombe Farm’s certification, Tom Stratton, estate manager for the Duchy of Cornwall on Dartmoor, said: “The Duchy is delighted that the hard work undertaken by Mark and Naomi has been recognised through this new process of certification and indeed that the process itself recognises the extensive management benefits that upland farming delivers. The whole farm approach to management, which minimises reliance on purchased inputs clearly makes sense, as does the imperative to farm with nature.”
■ For further information about Challacombe Farm or to order their Certified Regenerative by AGW lamb, hogget, mutton and beef, visit www.dartmoorfarm.com or follow them on Facebook and Instagram. To find out more about A Greener World and its certifications, visit www.agreenerworld.co.uk