Characteristics of grazing innovations currently emerging in Europe

Agricultural innovations are strongly affected by the context in which they operate. Within the thematic network Grazing4AgroEcology (https://grazing4agroecology.eu/), 121 grazing-based innovations have been identified and described by a network of facilitator agents across eight European countries. For successful innovation transfer, information about the context of origin is required, helping adopters to interpret the suitability of those innovations for their own context. The context of origin of the innovations was validated and analysed by an international, interdisciplinary Scientific & Technical Working Group. A Multiple Correspondence Analysis was used to explore patterns among innovations. Farms in the Atlantic North and South zones, with high rainfall, clustered together, while innovations in the Alpine region on sandy soils and low rainfall were mainly developed by part-time farmers focusing on pasture-beef. Innovations in the Mediterranean South, with mild winters, were generally easy to implement, whereas Atlantic Central farms tended to target global markets. The results suggest that the context of origin of the innovations affect their development and establishment.