It is estimated that 800 million people or one in nine of the global population are currently food insecure, the majority in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC) and including many small landholders involved in food production.

Further the majority of the projected two billion additional people by 2050 are expected to reside in the currently most vulnerable regions. For many of these communities livestock are critical to survival, as a food source and as a portable asset able to be drawn on.

Production systems and management are dramatically different in these regions relative to most high-income countries (HIC) with efforts to introduce HIC solutions potentially delivering negative outcomes. Land tenure and access is a critical issue with traditional systems often grazing livestock on common land.

There is growing recognition that solutions need to be locally adapted and that short-localised supply chains may be more appropriate than the globalised trade model. Use of locally adapted livestock, improved genetics consistent with the environment and feed solutions that increase production levels can reduce nutritional stress and environmental impact per unit of food produced.

The Savory Institute in particular, through work in Africa, have demonstrated that communal grazing using regenerative principles can dramatically increase soil health, productivity and drought resilience through improved water retention. Larger herds, created by communal grazing, are rotated across grazing areas in a controlled system that provides a community-based solution, while enhancing soil and above ground biodiversity.