Grazing sheep on solar farms provides huge opportunity for industry

ROSEMONT, Ill. — Grazing sheep on utility-scale solar sites is not a new practice for some shepherds.

“I visited my first site about 10 years ago,” said Erica Sanko, director of analytics and production programs for the American Sheep Industry Association. “It’s a form of targeted grazing and it’s providing a huge opportunity for the sheep industry.”

“This opportunity is largest since the Homestead Act,” said Marcus Gray, president of Gray’s LAMBscaping. “Around World War II, there was 50 million sheep in the U.S. and now there are about 5 million.”

“We have the opportunity to recover the sheep population in the U.S. and that will have a massive impact in our home county in Virginia,” said Gray during a panel discussion at the Solar Farm Summit hosted by the American Farmland Trust.

“Our county has approved about 20,000 acres of solar and at two to three sheep per acre we could double the livestock in our county,” said the shepherd who currently manages about 800 ewes.

“That is going to have an economic impact from a whole slew of businesses needed as sheep numbers increase.”

Eric Bronson, founder and CEO of James River Grazing, is a first-generation farmer who started his business in 2016.

“Agrivoltaics can return the money we make into more local impact,” Bronson said during the summit.

“From the impact of jobs standpoint, we’re not talking about minimum wage jobs,” he said. “And when that impact trickles out to the veterinarians, feed stores and gas stations, that money stays within a 15-mile radius.”

Grazing sheep on solar farms is a new income stream, Sanko said, that provides opportunities for new, young and beginning farmers.

“The sheep industry is a minor species compared to the cattle industry with about 87 million head in the U.S.,” she said.

“When you’re a minor species, many companies that provide infrastructure like animal health products, equipment or processing don’t invest in our industry because the ROI doesn’t work compared to the major species.”

If the sheep industry is going to grow as much as expected with agrivoltaics, that will help build the infrastructure.

“We’re going to see more veterinarians specialize in sheep production and more animal health products to assure animal welfare,” Sanko said.

“From a consumer’s standpoint, we import about three-quarters of the lamb consumed in the U.S.,” she said. “So, this could help to provide more American lamb to our consumers and provide it at a more attractive price point.”

“We sell lamb at a Mennonite store and at a farmers market so we’re getting more people introduced to lamb,” Gray said.

“Our region is the largest growing area for lamb consumption in the U.S.,” he said. “Producing more animals isn’t a problem because we can sell every one we produce, but it’s a matter of getting it from the field to the plate.”

Regional Food Business Centers around the country are working to assist with food supply chain issues.

“In the Midwest, the center is springing from Michigan State University and it will cover Michigan, Illinois, Wisconsin and Indiana,” said Betsy Dirksen Londrigan, administrator for the Rural Business-Cooperative Service for the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

“The center will provide technical assistance to producers and also help to connect producers to local markets,” she said.

The Inflation Reduction Act funding has completely changed the landscape for producers to be able to afford renewable energy systems, Dirksen Londrigan said.

“Previously, you could only receive 25% of your overall project cost in grant funding, but with the Inflation Reduction Act, it’s 50% so that’s a game-changer for folks,” she said. “Our applications have increased 600% so we know people are taking advantage of it.”

The goal of USDA’s Rural Development programs, the administrator said, is to get tax dollars back to the people.

“We want to get the money into your pockets to help you lower your monthly costs, make upgrades you need and keep you farming,” she said. “That’s why we are here.”

“Sheep are ideal for targeted grazing for vegetation management, but one of the challenges is trying to figure out how we can supply enough sheep to meet the demand,” Sanko said. “It takes time to build the flock.”

Education can also be a challenge for shepherds.

“We’re learning as we go,” Sanko said.

Agrivoltaics provides shepherds the opportunity to raise animals on a property while also getting paid for the service of managing the vegetation.

“This needs to be treated like a full-time job,” Gray said. “For people who have tried to do this in their spare time, it hasn’t gone well.”

Grazing sheep under solar panels is a 24-hour job, seven days a week.

“If you can’t be that person, you need to hire someone to be that person,” Gray said. “You must be on call because the dog may get out, the sheep are stuck somewhere or somebody needs access to an area where you have animals. This is not a hobby — we’re full-time ranchers.”

The opportunities for grazing sheep on solar farms are disrupting the industry.

“The rate of growth is disrupting and we need to realize we’re going to deal with some growing pains,” Sanko said. “We need to work together to address those so we don’t pass up this opportunity.”

Sanko is excited about the development of Agrivoltaics.

“You are employing sheep to provide a service and grazing is not free because there are costs involved,” she said. “Grazing on public lands is not the model we’re talking about today — this is a mindset change.”