Crop diversity and livestock integration are amongst the most important drivers for increasing life in the soil and therefore its natural fertility. Many farms in Argentina suffer from a lack of diversity due to intensive monocropping that has persisted for too long. In our work, we seek to maximise the diversity of cropping plans, switch from synthetic to organic inputs and integrate livestock into the farm system so that we can improve both soil health and farm profitability.

Given the economic and political context of Argentina, we pay special attention to developing a transition strategy that pays in the short-term, reducing risks and protecting agricultural assets.

We believe that the large-scale farming systems that dominate industrial agricultural landscapes today need to change. We see from our work at farm-level in Argentina that a smooth transition, where farm profitability is improved alongside soil health, is possible in this market. What’s more, we are inspired by the possibility that Argentina could become a role-model for large-scale farming systems in need of transition right around the world.