Silas is a farmer, coach, and consultant with hands-on experience in regenerative agriculture. He divides his time between the Cotswold Cattle Company, his co-owned food and farming venture, and Grass Fed Farmer, his agroecological coaching business. With a background rooted in both the UK and New Zealand, he champions lean, profitable farming systems that deliver on increasing biodiversity and soil health gains. Silas is also an Integrity Soils trained agroecological coach from the Yellowstone cohort.

In this episode, we hear about...

• A Tale of Two Systems: The stark contrast between subsidised UK farming and New Zealand's unsubsidised, business-focused approach.

• The First Profit in 25 Years: How Silas’s "New Zealand way" of mob grazing and cutting inputs transformed the economics of a UK farm.

• Direct-to-Consumer Deep Dive: The tough lessons learned from selling retail cuts and the strategic pivot to a burger-focused food brand.

• From Gut Feeling to Hard Data: The journey from observing changes on the farm to participating in a four-year scientific research project on adaptive grazing.

• Inside the Integrity Soils 'Create' Program: What it’s like to train with Nicole Masters in Yellowstone, blending deep soil science with crucial coaching and personal development skills.

• The Power of Collaboration: The innovative model behind Cotswold Cattle Company, partnering with arable landowners to bring cattle back to the landscape.

• Beyond the Labels: Why Silas is passionate about breaking down the barriers between regenerative and conventional farming to create real, large-scale impact.

Have a look at what Silas is doing at

https://www.grassfedfarmer.com

https://www.cotswoldcattle.com

Thanks, as always, to our sponsors - Manitoba Forage and Grassland Association and Covers & Co.

www.mfga.net

https://www.coversandco.ca

Welcome to this episode of Think Outside the Fence, where we're joined by Andy Rumming, a visionary beef farmer from Wiltshire, England. Andy shares his incredible journey in modern agriculture, focusing on adding value in a regenerative and holistic way.

Key Discussion Points:

• Maximising Value per Animal: Discover how Andy prioritises getting more value from each animal rather than simply increasing herd size.
• Finding Hidden Value: Andy reveals how he turns byproducts into profitable ventures, from bones to enriched mince, and how customer feedback drives innovation.
• The "Bottom of the Food Chain" Mindset: A powerful discussion on why farmers should strive to be in control of their destiny rather than feeling like victims of market forces.
• Family Business & Diversification: Learn how Andy navigates a multi-generational farm and successfully introduces new enterprises.
• The Power of Mindset: Andy discusses the critical importance of physical and mental health in farming, emphasising continuous learning and even keeping a "lessons learned journal."
• From Soil to Sneaker: Explore Andy's innovative approach to farm diversification, utilising every part of the animal from enriched mince and bone products to creating high-end leather goods and running "sneaker workshops" on the farm.
• Building a Sustainable Business: Andy shares his strategies for smart growth, infrastructure development (including a new, efficient butchery), and managing customer relationships to ensure profitability and resilience.
• Overcoming Challenges: Hear how Andy adapted his business to tackle issues like Bovine TB and the complexities of managing a multi-partner farm.

Visit Andy's websites

https://www.andyrummingsbeef.co.uk/

https://www.farmsneaker.com/

Thanks, as always, to our sponsors

Manitoba Forage and Grassland Asocciation www.mfga.net

Covers & Co. https://www.coversandco.ca/

In this episode, we chat to Patti Durand from Bright Track Consulting. Patti talks us through her background in agriculture, her work with farm families, and her transition to consulting and authorship with her book "The Future Leader - The Successor's Guide to Family Business Leadership," which focuses on empowering the successor generation in family businesses.

We dig into Patti's experiences with communication challenges in families, the impact of legacy, and her methodology for working with families to improve communication and plan for succession.

To learn more about Patti's book and get your copy, visit https://www.thefutureleader.ca/

As always, thanks to our sponsors

Manitoba Forage and Grassland Association https://www.mfga.net

Covers & Co. https://www.coversandco.ca

This month we chat to Rhys Williams. A farmer, consultant and founder and organiser of Da Byw, the sustainable livestock farming conference.

We cover the dos and don'ts of a joint venture, regenerative sheep businesses (yes, sheep!), and the lineup for this year's Da Byw conference in North Wales.

It's set to be a great conference, so take a look at the programme on the website and get your ticket booked! https://www.dabywlivestock.com/

Thanks, as always, to our sponsors.

Manitoba Forage and Grassland Association www.mfga.net

Covers & Co. https://www.coversandco.ca/

Our first in-person interview, recorded at the MFGA Regenerative Ag conference in Brandon, Manitoba!

In this episode, we have a lively conversation with Brian Harper, a professional land manager and cow-calf producer from Brandon, Manitoba. This interview explores Brian's farm operations, his innovative agricultural practices, and his insights into regenerative farming. Brian shares his journey towards sustainable farming, his experiences with cattle breeding, and his plans for succession and future transitions.

Thanks, as always, to our sponsors Manitoba Forage and Grassland Association and Covers & Co.

www.mfga.net

www.coversandco.ca

We have a new sponsor for season 2 of Think Outside The Fence! Thank you to Covers & Co for their support.

In this episode we speak to Joe Gardiner, Agronomy and Research manager at Covers & Co, to find out more about where it all started, what the team are trying to achieve with their work and how farmers all over the world can get involved.

Covers & Co. have some amazing resources and are super busy providing education opportunities to farmers and ranchers across Canada, who want to improve their soil health and profitability through plant diversity.

For those of you listening in the UK - they have so much amazing stuff online as well.

Take a look at their website to find out more.

https://www.coversandco.ca/

Happy New Year everyone!

Here's our coverage of the MFGA 2024 Regen Ag conference in Brandon, Manitoba.

We both attended the conference and thought it was great - all of the speakers were engageing, interesting and relevant.

Thanks to our sponsors, MFGA, for having us and for organising and hosting such a great conference.

These highlight clips really don't do the speakers justice, so keep and eye out on social media as MFGA will be putting the full recordings on their YouTube channel.

Thanks, as always, to both our sponsors.

Manitoba Forage and Grassland Association www.mfga.net

Covers & Co. www.coversandco.ca

Welcome to episode 2 of the new season! We're bucking the trend this month with our wonderful guest, Ben Harman. Ben is a beef farmer from Buckinghamshire, England, who is very specific about his meat...

This episode really is all about the cows! We chat breeding, meat quality, marketing and branding with our usual dose of mindset too. Buckle up for a hillariously funny episode with the great mind that is Ben.

Thanks as always to our sponsors

Manitoba Forage and Grassland Association https://mfga.net/

and

Covers and Co. https://www.coversandco.ca/